My luck sucks, so it has to be fate
by Rickksss
Summary: Mickie has had bad luck for half of her life. She just found out her boyfriend/co-worker has a wife and a child. She thinks its because she is cursed with bad luck. But her luck might change when she gets a new sexy blue-eyed boss?
1. Chapter 1

**My New story!-**

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Her legs felt a little wobbly and Mickie gripped the metal hand rail for

support as she made her way down the escalator. She licked her lips and she felt

the buzz from the alcohol flowing through her veins. She'd lost count of how

much she had consumed tonight. She went hard tonight, but she didn't care. She just wondered why on earth she did this to

herself. Choosing a guy that always seems perfect but happens to be married with a kid.

"I'm a whore and homewrecker" She whispered to herself

She knew she was destined to feel like total crap in the morning. As she should be. Work

was going to be total hell and she had a meeting in the morning too. Shit. She

would be lucky if she was even sober by then Mickie arrived at her platform noticing her train was already

there. She quickly jogged and caught it just as the doors began to close behind

her. Lightly panting, she took the nearest available seat. Her blue eyes stared

out of the window and her mind began to drift to Michael as the train pulled away.

God, he would be at the meeting tomorrow. All the departments would be there and

he would greet her and sit across the table from her pretending that nothing had

happened between them. That's what hurt the most about the whole thing. Having

to see him every day and smile and act like they were still friends when deep

inside all she wanted to do was scream at him and cry.

Suddenly Mickie felt the hot tears burn her throat and well in her eyes.

She blinked them back furiously. She wasn't going to cry. Not over him. Not when

she'd shed enough tears over him already. But in her drunken state, Mickie's

emotions got the better of her and the tears began to slip down her cheeks. She

bent her head to conceal them and her hand covered her face as her body shook

with her silent sobs. God, she felt like such a stupid idiot. How could she not

have known that Michael had a wife? Michaels's colleagues and friends were probably

laughing at her stupidity behind her back. That's if they even knew about her.

After all, she had been a secret; a horrible and embarrassing secret.

"Hey, are you okay?"

Mickie sniffed loudly and lifted her head at the sound of the deep, smooth

voice. She was met with a pair of sympathetic blue eyes that seemed to hold

genuine concern for her. She wondered where this guy had come from. She couldn't

recall him being in the opposite seat when she had gotten on the train. He had

quite literally appeared out of nowhere.

"I couldn't help but notice you look upset." he explained.

Mickie sniffed as she wiped her wet cheeks with the back of her hand

feeling her head spin. "Upset? Why would I be upset? I mean just because that

lowlife bastard ruined my life, it doesn't mean I'm going to wallow over his

sorry ass." she replied, rambling.

She let out a shaky breath as she stared out the dirty glass window. The

stars in the sky twinkled brightly for a few brief seconds before the carriage

travelled through into the black tunnel.

"Guy trouble?"

Mickie looked over at the blonde haired stranger. Her glazed over

eyes looked at him drunkenly and suspiciously wondering why the hell he gave a

crap. It's not like anyone else did. Well certainly not Michael anyway and she was

beginning to wonder if he ever did. All she had been good for was sex and

..well, just sex really. The majority of their relationship had been spent

between the sheets. She wondered if her sheets were better than the ones he had

at home and that currently adorned his marriage bed.

"are you sure you're okay?"

Mickie blinked rapidly as her bleary eyes tried to remain focused. She

licked her lips and swallowed thickly. "Not really. Did you know I found out he

was married."

The stranger's eyebrows rose fractionally and his mouth smiled

sympathetically and showed of very attracktive dimples.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. Not on my account. The man was a grade one asshole. I'm better off

without him anyway."

Mickie shifted uncomfortably in her seat as she felt her body temperature

rise. She bent her knees and her high heeled boots clicked against the metal

grate upon the floor.

"It's hot in here, isn't it?" she commented.

She loosened the belt on her coat and pulled the collar away from her

shoulders. She puffed and blew her hair from her forehead.

"They need to invest in air conditioning for these damn things."

The stranger's low chuckle filled the empty carriage.

"Can I give you a piece of free advice?" she asked, pausing to smile at him

apologetically. "Sorry, I don't actually know your name."

His amused blue eyes were warm as he smiled. "It's John."

"John? I knew a John once." replied Mickie and crooked grin crossed

her face. "He was a ginger with really bad teeth. He looked nothing like you

and that's a good thing for you, trust me. He had a face like a... i don't know but it was bad. He

was like the most ugliest guy you could ever imagine."

As John chuckled, Mickie's grin widened. She loved that, his laugh.

It was low and deep and throaty. It was like it came all the way down from the

tips of his toes. Not like Michael's. His laugh was dull and boring.

Pretty much like his lovemaking in fact. He had been no fun and controlling. He didn't pleasure her at all, but she would bet any money that Paul would. He looked the passionate type and probably knew

exactly how to satisfy a woman. Mickie felt a warm flush at that thought. She

bit down on her lip thoughtfully as Rachel's suggestion of sex with a random stranger flashed

through her mind. She quickly shook her head. She may be drunk but she wasn't

easy. There was no way on earth she would just sleep with a man and especially

not a stranger she had just met on the underground even if he was drop-dead

gorgeous and had eyes she could totally get lost in. God, and then there was his

eyes. they looked like the ocean water. She wondered what it would feel like if she got lost in them.

As Mickie continued to stare dreamily in John's direction, she didn't

notice that he had stopped laughing and was now looking at her curiously. It was

only when he cleared his throat that she was lifted from her haze and realised

what she had been doing. God, she had been staring at him. In fact she had been

practically ogling him. Feeling her cheeks flush with embarrassment, she rubbed

her palms on her skirt and glanced out the window. She realised they had arrived

at the next station. The carriage shuddered slightly as they came to a stop and

she heard the sound of the automatic doors opening. She looked across to see a

young couple holding hands obviously in love judging from the way they were

making eyes at one another. She wrinkled her nose in disapproval and tried to

ignore how light headed she got.

"So, I believe you were going to tell me something?"

Mickie's eyes blinked a few times before they focused on John once more.

His arms folded over his chest. Damn, the man looked sexy.

"You were going to give me some advice?" he reminded her.

Mickie coughed and cleared her throat, nodding her head. "Are you married,

John?"

He shook his head. While Mickie silently wondered how such a good looking

guy wasn't snapped up, she wagged her manicured finger in his direction.

"Well, if you ever do marry, never, and I mean never, cheat on your wife.

Never ever be like Michael fucking Phillies. I didn't know, you see. I didn't know he

had a wife. Because if I did know he was married, I would have never ever gone

near him. I'm not a home wrecker, John. You believe that, don't you?"

She felt a wave of relief wash over her as John nodded his head. Though why

she did, she wasn't sure just like she wasn't sure why she was telling him any

of this. He probably thought she was a crazy chick but was just too

damn polite to say anything but it felt so good to talk about it and she felt

the need to get it off her chest. She was unburdening herself and okay, it was

the alcohol talking. She knew that. She always did seem to spill her guts when

she was drunk. In fact Rachel liked to remind her of that on several occasions

although this was the first time it had involved a complete stranger. She would

probably regret all of this in the morning but she guessed it wouldn't really

matter. She would never see this man again. And besides, he was so nice and

caring and really easy to talk to.

"So, how did you find out?"

"What? That he was cheating on me?" she asked.

John smiled and nodded his head. Mickie puffed out her cheeks and sighed

dramatically. She tucked her hair behind her ear.

"He showed up with his wife and child to a corporate dinner last week. I wasn't

supposed to be there but Josh, that's my boss. He couldn't make it at the last

minute so he asked me to go instead. Let's just say we were both surprised when

I showed up at our company's table."

"You work with the guy?"

Mickie nodded her head sadly.

"Damn, that must be awkward."

"It most defiantly is." She pressed her lips together in a tight smile. "I seem

to make my life difficult for myself."

John frowned slightly as he reached across and covered her hand with his. It

felt so soft and warm and deliciously comforting to her. Mickie breathed him

in, inhaling the spicy scent of his cologne. It was intoxicating and extremely

masculine just like him.

"I'm sure things will get better for you soon." he said encouragingly. "After

all, you're young and you're very very beautiful. I'm sure it won't be long before this

guy is kicking himself wondering why the hell he let you get away."

A slow, shy smile crept across Mickie's face as John sat back in his seat.

However, her smile slowly disappeared as she watched him get to his feet.

"This is my stop."

John looked out the glass and noticed they were pulling into the next

station. She sighed. She had another two stops to go but she just wanted home

now. Her eyes were tired and heavy. Her head still felt woozy. She just wanted

to sleep.

"You will take care going home now, won't you?"

She glanced up at him and smiled. His blue eyes were soft and concerned.

She was touched by his words. "I'll be fine. I live just across the road from

the station on Biden Street."

He nodded, seemingly satisfied with her answer. His big hand gripped the

metal pole at the end of the seat as the carriage grinded to a halt. "It was

very nice meeting you Mickie"

His voice trailed away. He looked at her quizzically and her

smiled.

"You too, John."

She was about to apologise for her drunken ranting when the automatic doors

hissed and slid open. John stepped away from the pole and lifted his big hand in

a wave.

"Maybe I'll see you again some day."

"Maybe." she replied. Her brown eyes stared after him wistfully as his large

frame exited the carriage. She only looked away and settled back in her seat

once the doors were closed and he was out of sight.

The train slowly pulled away and she began to chew on her fingernail as she

thought about him. John. Her polite, blonde and extremely sexy stranger. She

wondered what his answer would have been had she been bold enough to suggest

spending the night together. She chuckled to herself. Maybe if she ever did run

into him, she could always ask him and find out although the chances were she'd

never see him again. It wasn't the way her life worked and she just wasn't that

, Mickie wearily leant back in her seat crossing her arms over her

chest. As she rested her head against the glass, she continued to think of John.

Even though their meeting had been brief, she had a feeling he was going to be

on her mind for quite a while. There was no way she would forget her handsome

stranger in a hurry. She would remember him happily and fondly. After all he'd

been a lovely breath of fresh air in her otherwise dull and crappy life

* * *

**I hope you guys liked it! I have a good feeling about this one.**

** -SR**


	2. Chapter 2

Absently licking her lips, Mickie tucked her hair behind her ear as she got off the elevator. She smoothed down her navy blue skirt and flashed a smile of brief acknowledgment towards the clothing assistant standing by a display of scarfs.

"By the way, did I lend you my sweater from forever 21?" Rachel asked, her eyes narrowing in her friend's direction.

There was a momentary silence before Mickie slowly shook her head. "No."

"Damn. I wanted to wear it on my date with Tim this weekend. I guess I'll have to try and find something else."

Mickie's nose wrinkled in curiosity wondering who Tim was and made a mental note to remember about the sand colored sweater. It was still stuffed in her drawer at work, her guilty secret after she had spilt grape juice all over it a week ago thanks to Charlie, her boxer. She was waiting until she had a chance to try and find another sweater to replace it not to mention the time to replace it.

"The dress I spotted is down the other aisle, Micks. That's if they even have it in my size. They didn't yesterday. Where was yours?"

Mickie pointed to the purple dress on the rail just behind her and Rachel nodded.

"Well seeing we're tight for time, do you want to grab yours and I'll see if I can get mine?"

"Sure." Mickie agreed and smiled as Rachel rushed off in the opposite direction. She sorted through the dresses until she found her size. She'd already tried it on and Rache had given her se approval. Of course, she hadn't bought it straight away. It was an extravagant purchase by her standards but the minute she had tried it on she knew she had to have it. It fitted her perfectly. It was like the dress had been made for her.

Placing the dress carefully over her arm, Mickie wandered across to the lingerie section. This was another one of her many weaknesses. She loved nice lingerie only of the tasteful variety of course. In fact she had spent hundreds of dollars on the stuff especially over the last few months in an attempt to entice Michael. Of course, he hadn't given two hoots what lingerie she wore. He just whisked it off and methodically began having sex with her. Mickie quickly shook her head ridding herself of all memories of him. She wasn't going to think about him. She had promised herself and Rachelm she wasn't going to spend another minute dwelling over the bastard.

Mickie flicked her hair in a silent resolve as she picked up the red silk two piece set. A small smile crossed her face as she examined it. It certainly didn't leave much to the imagination but at least it would ensure no visible lines underneath her dress. And of course that was the only reason she was buying it. It certainly wasn't because she was looking to get lucky. One, she didn't do one night stands and two she was sworn off men for good. She'd made that decision this morning as she rinsed the soapy shampoo suds from her hair.

"So it looks like we meet again."

Mickie's breath caught her in throat, feeling slightly startled as she recognised the deep, not to mention knee weakening voice behind her. She swallowed thickly as she slowly turned around towards him. Her sexy stranger! John! She would never forget that name. Micie looked into the familiar blue eyes and noticed he was wearing a black shirt and suit that looked ridiculously expensive and nothing like the faded denim jeans he wore last night. The white tie sitting neatly around his thick neck was definitely made of silk, she saw the same twinkle in his deep blue eyes which crinkled in the corners. God, he was even sexier than she remembered. And that smile. She was trying to ignore the overwhelming urge she had to grin like an idiot at him. Instead she pressed her lips in a tight, controlled smile.

"Hi."

"Hey." His eyes fell on the black garments currently draped across her arm. His big hand gestured towards them. "You're shopping?"

Mickie glanced down at the skimpy lingerie in her hand and immediately felt the heat rise to her cheeks. She nodded her head in response as she folded the dress across hiding the underwear from view. She had revealed enough about herself to John last night. The last thing she needed was to reveal her taste in undergarments too.

"I guess it's better than spending the day stuck at work."

"Yeah, this is what i do to get away. Shopping i mean. for other clothes and stuff..."

She mentally kicked herself as she saw John's eyebrows rise inquisitively at her comment.

"I mean i love to work but it gets overwelming at times." Mickie said, trying her best to explain herself. John already thought she was a crazy woman. The last thing she needed was to add slacker to the list. Although she didn't know why it mattered what he thought of her. She'd only met him twice. In the last twelve hours. That didn't mean anything. It absolutely didn't. After all, she didn't believe in fate and all that mumbo jumbo destiny stuff. Not really.

But all thoughts of fate and destiny quickly left her mind as she saw the slow captivating grin that crossed John's face..

"You do this a lot?" he asked.

She cleared her throat, sniffing indignantly thinking he didn't have to look so damn amused. Anyway, how was she meant to think straight with him grinning like that? She tucked her hair behind her ear and tried to think about how hot it had suddenly become in the store.

"It's a refresher." she mumbled.

"Ah I see." he replied, his blue eyes twinkling with amusement.

Mickie gave him an awkward smile. She quickly glanced over his shoulder searching frantically for Rachel. She needed to get out of here before she embarrassed herself in front of him any further. And before she was tempted to bury her face in his neck and get lost in his incredible scent. Christ, he smelled good.

"Micks, I found it. I found the dress in my size."

Mickie spun round on her heel. She saw Rache racing towards her with a huge grin plastered across her face as she waved the blue garment in the air. She also saw the inquisitive glance her friend threw John's way and her flirtatious smile as she nodded her head, acknowledging him.

"Why hello there."

"Hello."

Rachel switched the dress to her left hand and offered her right one to John. "I'm Rachel, Mickie's friend. We work together." She grinned at John as he shook her hand. "I would have let Mickie introduce us but we would have probably been waiting forever. Poor thing. Her manners aren't the best at times."

Mickie threw Rachel a less than amused glare. John chuckled as he removed his hand dropping it by his side.

"Well Rachel, it's nice to meet you. I'm John."

Rachel's eyes were wide with approval as she looked across at Mickie. Mickie felt like rolling her eyes. There wasn't a man alive that Rachel didn't find attractive. She'd slept with Larry in the writing department and he was a total geek. John was a God in comparison. Then again, John was a God period.

"We really should be getting back."

"Your shopping our almost over?" teased John.

"See, Micks and I have this thing we do when either of us are bored or pissed off at work. I go into her office and ask her if she could check over a article. That's our code for get me out of here. We came here today because we needed an outfit for a party next weekend. We usually go to a cute little bakery across the street. They have the best cookies there, by the way. You should check it out some time."

As John's deep laughter sent a tingle down her spine, Mickie glared desperately at her friend trying her best to tell her to shut the hell up. She had embarrassed herself enough in front of John in the twelve hours since she had met him. She didn't need her friend to add to it. She grabbed her elbow and yanked on it.

"Rachel, we really have to go now."

She threw her friend a curious glance. "Okay, okay. No need to pull my arm out of the socket. I get the picture." She turned her head and once again, smiled sweetly at John. "It was good to meet you."

"And you." The expression on his face softened as he looked towards Mickie. "And it was a nice surprise running into you again so soon, Mickie."

Mickie nodded her head. A lop sided smile crossed her face. "Yes, it was."

"How do you two know one another anyway?"

Mickie cursed her friend's need to ask that question. As her eyes connected briefly with John's, she felt her cheeks burn. She inwardly cringed as she recalled her drunken rambling.

"We met on the train." replied John as he glanced again at his watch. "Sorry ladies but I've got to go. I've got a meeting in half an hour and I still haven't got my sister a birthday present. She'll kill me if I don't get the peach dress she's been harping on about for weeks. That's if I can even find the damn thing."

Mickie smiled. "Light colored dresses are on the next floor. They're beside the woollen coats. Just go to the end of this aisle and take the escalator."

He smiled back gratefully. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

As John disappeared among the group of shoppers heading towards the escalators, Mickie stood still staring after him. She didn't even feel the irate shopper who barged her way past knocking against her shoulder. Rachel had noticed though and threw the shopper a furious look. As she turned towards Mickie, she smiled knowingly at the dreamy look on her friend's face. "You like him, don't you?"

"What?" Mickie linked as Rachel's voice interrupted her thoughts. She fixed the dress in her arms picking up the material that dragged on the dusty floor.

"I said you like John."

"Don't be ridiculous!" snorted Mickie as she made her way across to the cash register. She tried not to look in rachel's direction. She didn't want to see the smug look she knew would be slapped across her face. Thankfully, she remained quiet as they paid for their purchases. Mickie tried not to fret over the damage that the two hundred and fifty dollar dress and lingerie had done to her credit card. She was sailing dangerously close to her limit as it was. Another couple of purchases like those and she'd be eating ramen for weeks.

It wasn't until they were rushing along the sidewalk heading back to the office that Rachel broke the silence. Her green eyes looked inquisitively as she playfully nudged her friend. "He was pretty hot, wasn't he?"

"Who?" asked Mickie pretending to plead ignorance. Her stomach was still fluttering after her second meeting with him.

"Don't who me, Mickie Laree. You know fine well who I was talking about."

"John?"

Rachel adjusted the strap of her bag on her shoulder. "Yes, John. I didn't see any other hot looking guys this morning, did you?"

"No. Not really." The girls forgot to check the traffic as they quickly crossing the street. The cab honked its horn as it drove past them, narrowly missing them. Rachel showed no hesitation in flipping him off.

"So, you didn't answer my question." They side stepped an old lady pushing her shopping bag behind her. "Do you think he's hot or not?"

Mickie pretended to shrug non-chalantly. "He was alright."

"Alright?! Alright?! Mickie, the man was fucking gorgeous. Are you blind?"

Mickie felt a flush coming to her cheeks as she remembered just exactly how gorgeous John was. Everything from his deep blue eyes to his exceptionally large hands just oozed total sexiness to her. And his smile….. It was just a shame she would never see it again. There was no way Lady Luck would shine down on her a third time and let her run into him again that was for sure.

Mickie pulled open the heavy double glass doors to the offices. She felt rachel's hand on her shoulder stopping her from ascending the large staircase.

"When did you meet him anyway?"

Just then Mickie noticed Michael talking with a member of staff from personnel. She tried to ignore the pang in her chest as she turned her attention to Rachel. "Last night. Listen, we don't have time for this. I've got a meeting in half an hour." Her high heeled shoes clicked against the stairs. As she looked up she noticed with relief that Michael was gone.

"Don't think you're getting away with this, Micks. I want full details on your meeting with John. Tonight."

Mickie stopped at the top of the stairs. She turned to her friend and sighed. "I guess I've got no choice have I?"

"No." Rachel grinned widely as she held out her hand. "Give me your bag. I'll hide it under my desk."

Stephanie smiled at her gratefully. Mary the big Mouth would take great joy in pointing out the Bloomingdale's bag in her hand. She was a spiteful bitch with her eye firmly planted on her Executive Assistant job. It also didn't help that she was tight with Jack, the head of the department. She went running to him about every damn thing. She swore she took count of the number of cups of coffee everyone consumed in a day and how many bathroom breaks were taken. "See you in the foyer at five?" she asked Rachel.

"Of course"

As Mickie lifted her hand in a wave, she turned left into the publishing department. She hung her coat on the rack and noticed the hectic atmosphere in the office. People were chatting excitedly. Papers were being shuffled. She even noticed Sandy's spray her neck with perfume. She frowned. Something was obviously going on around here. What the hell had she missed in the half hour she had been away? She glanced curiously around her as she wandered across to her desk switching on her computer as she sat down.

"Where have you been?"

Stephanie looked up to see Mary at the edge of her cubicle. She tried to ignore the snippy bitchy tone to her voice and forced a smile in her direction. "Rachel and I had to crunch some pictures for ideas."

"Well you missed the gossip."

Mickie picked up the pen on her desk. She leaned back in her seat as she flipped it between her fingers. She wasn't surprised Mary was the first in line to tell her about any sort of gossip. She was practically bursting at the thought of revealing all to her. Her cheeks were puffed out and red.

"We're getting a new DM (department maneger)."

Mickie raised her brow inquisitively. So it looked like the rumours were true. Harper William had outstayed his welcome at the company. Of course, his affair with the twenty three old secretary and impregnating her hadn't done him any favours. Being sixty nine years old and married, people obviously expected better behaviour from their Department Maneger. She had no doubt that a big fat severance pay had obviously softened the blow for him though.

"We're all gathering in the meeting room now. Jack is going to introduce him in a few minutes. It's just as well you are back. You would have missed it."

Mickie pushed back her chair and got to her feet. She made a face at Mary as she followed her to the meeting room and tried not to choke on the smell of Sandy's perfume as she passed her desk. She must have sprayed the entire damn bottle.

As she took her seat at the far side of the table, she noticed everyone anxiously watching the door. It had been a long time since there had been a new member of staff in the office. Mary had been the last and she had arrived almost two years ago. People were obviously feeling quite elated by the news especially when a lot of them couldn't stand the sight of Harper. He'd been abrupt and extremely sharp to a lot of the staff, Mickie included. But she had just brushed it off. There wasn't any reason to take it personally. It had just been Harper.

As she bent down to jot her shopping list on the small notepad she had brought in front of her, she heard Jack's voice from the top of the table.

"It looks like everyone is here. In that case, I'd like you to introduce you to the new Department manger of our company. I'm sure you'll all join me in welcoming John Cena."

Mickie placed down her pen and shook her head in amusement. As the sound of scraping chairs filled the room, she slowly got to her feet and glanced down at her white sweater picking at a loose thread. It seemed the name John was like a bus. There are none in your life and then two come along at once. Although she was pretty damn sure this John would be nothing like her tall and handsome stranger. He was definitely unique and one of a kind.

A group of people parted just as Mickie glanced up. She looked over in fascination at the man standing beside Jack and her breath hitched in her throat as she recognised him. He was standing with his back to her but she knew exactly who he was. His short blonde hair and broad back gave the game away. She swallowed thickly. It was him. It was her sexy stranger. Only now, he wasn't a stranger to her. He was her boss and her employer. And fuck, she had told him all about Michael.

Just then John turned his head as Jack introduced him to Mary. Mickie's heart thumped in her chest as he flashed her that smile, that same smile that had rendered her weak at her knees. Only it couldn't make her weak at the knees any longer. Not if she wanted to keep her job and a roof over her head.

Mickie looked back up to see John staring out her and she saw the amusment across his eyes and he raised his eyebrows. Fuck, this is awkward. Especially now he was making his way towards her with Jack. Mickie felt her face flush hot with embarrassment as he walked to stand in front of her. She tried not to think about their meeting at the mall and couldn't help but notice that his incredible blue eyes were gentle as Jack introduced her.

"John, this is Mickie James. She's our Executive Publishing Assistant."

John smiled at her as he held out his hand. "It's nice to meet you Mickie."

She took his outstretched hand and her heart skipped a beat as he winked at her. She swore he did. Then again, it had been so brief. Perhaps she had imagined it. God, his hand felt so soft and warm in hers. She'd never felt a man's hand as soft as that and he still smelled amazing. She still had the uncontrollable urge to bury her face in his neck.

"Mickie, maybe you could let go of John's hand now."

Realising she was still gripping his fingers loosely, Mickie flushed with embarrassment as she quickly dropped John's hand. She silently cursed Jack as she heard his low chuckle. She hadn't realised she had held onto his hand for so long. John was really going to think she was an idiot and a moron. The very same moron that could very well be out of a job tomorrow. Rache had spilled the beans. He knew about their code and how they sneaked out of the office. Her parents had been right when they had told her to never ever talk to a stranger. She would never ever tell a stranger anything again. But as John wandered across to where Jack was standing with Sandy, she realised that advice was just a little too late. Fate had well and truly bit her in the ass. She was doomed. Utterly and totally doomed.


	3. Chapter 3

Mickie shook her head ridding it of any of those thoughts. She couldn't think about John. Thats all she seems to do now a days. Instead she was going to focus all her attention on the article of the 2012 Olympics.

Mickie quickly sat up straight in her chair and threw down her pen on the desk. She tucked her hair behind her ears. She had to stop this right now and she needed to concentrate on the task in hand. The clock was ticking. She had to think about the opening cermonies. She had to try and focus. But first she would get herself some coffee to help perk up. Her hangover was still lingering. She felt lethargic and drained and she was in desperate need of a caffeine boost.

Mickie pushed back her chair and stepped out of her cubicle. She could still smell Sandy's perfume. It was pungent. She heard a ripple of laughter behind her as she made her way to the coffee machine. Maybe she would have some chocolate too. She had a butterfinger bar safely tucked in the back of her drawer which she kept for emergencies and today was definitely an emergency. She pressed the button for the coffee. She stood back and watched the hot black liquid pour into the Styrofoam cup. She heard a few hushed whispers behind her and then a loud cough. She noticed a mark on the cuff of her jacket and she absently rubbed at it.

"Jack, I've distributed that e-mail for you."

Mickie rolled her eyes dryly at the sound of her voice. Mary was such a suck-up not to mention a pain in the ass. She was probably making a note of the fact she was at the coffee machine for the fifth time today. Maybe she would chain-drink the stuff for the rest of the day. That would give her something to write down. The stupid bitch would have a damn field day.

"Thank you Mary."

Mickie picked up her coffee cup from the machine. She turned around and blew on it in an attempt to cool the drink down. She'd already scalded her mouth once today. Her tongue still hadn't recovered.

"Mickie."

She looked up to see Jack standing in front of her. He was shuffling some papers in his hand. His glasses were pushed up and rested across his forehead. She wondered why he did that. He looked stupid.

"How's the article coming along?"

Mickie smile and lied through her teeth. "It's coming along."

Jack nodded. He glanced at the papers distractedly. "Good. Good." He looked up and smiled at her as he raked his fingers through his short messy curls. "This is one of our major articles. I don't need to tell you how important it is that we get this one right."

Mickie inwardly sighed as he turned and walked away. No pressure then. Christ. She took a sip from her coffee just as Jack spun back round.

"Oh, I almost forgot to tell you. John would like to see you in his office."

Mickie spluttered and coffee dribbled down her chin as Jack disappeared behind his cubicle. She lifted her hand and wiped it away. She tried to ignore the churning in her stomach. John wanted to see her. Shit. He hadn't wanted to see anyone else so far which meant he had totally singled her out. She wondered why.

Pondering over that thought nervously, Mickie slowly walked towards her desk, her coffee clutched in her hand. She chewed on her lip as she remembered their encounter in the department store. Fuck. John knew all about her secret code with Rachel. Maybe he was going to fire her for it and make an example out of her. What the hell was she going to do if he did? She loved her job. She would hate to lose it.

Her feet shuffled slowly along the worn carpet. She could feel Mary watching her as she passed by her desk. Mickie ignored her as she placed her coffee down beside the plant on top of her small filing cabinet. Bitch. She could probably smell the scent of her blood. No doubt she would take great delight in replacing her. She was probably rearranging her desk space right now and trying to work out where to put her fat ass.

Mickie bent down and picked up her leather handbag. She rummaged in it and retrieved her lip gloss. She quickly applied it. If she was going to get sacked, she was damn well going to look her best.

"Are you still here?"

Jack's voice startled her. The lip gloss tube fell from her hand and clattered onto the desk.

"Forget the damn makeup, Mickie. Get your ass to his office."

The heat rose to her cheeks as she quickly brushed past him. She could feel everyone's eyes on her as she disappeared along the small corridor. She cursed Jack under her breath as her stomach twisted in knots. He really was a bastard. He took far too much pleasure in embarrassing her. No doubt Mary was grinning smugly from ear to ear.

But her embarrassment quickly disappeared and her footsteps slowed down as she approached the wooden door looming in front of her. She let out a shaky breath as she adjusted her jacket. Her heart was pounding in her chest and her stomach was still churning. As she lifted her hand to knock she noticed it was trembling slightly. Maybe this was how it felt before you got executed. Not that she actually knew of anyone who had been executed. But if she did, she would have a lot of more sympathy towards them. This was absolute torture and the most horrible feeling ever.

Mickie had just prepared herself to knock when the door opened. She almost jumped out of her skin as she came face to face with John. Her brown eyes went wide as he flashed her one of those dazzling smiles of his. She swallowed thickly and tried her best to remain calm and composed. He still smelled absolutely amazing. Shit, he still looked amazing too. His suit jacket was off and the top button was undone on his shirt. His ridiculously expensive tie had been loosened around his neck. Maybe she would send him a memo and tell him it was compulsory he wore it that way. Maybe she could also add that he had to be naked too.

Feeling her pulse race at that thought, she mentally chastised herself. This train of thought wasn't helping her at all. She needed to remind herself that Paul was her boss. Then again, he might not be for very much longer. He was probably about to tell her to clear her desk. That practically now made him the enemy.

She coughed lightly and her lips upturned into a small smile. "Jack told me you wanted to see me."

John nodded and stood aside. "Come in."

Mickie walked into the large office. The bright sunlight shone through the glass window. It was open and she could hear the sound of the traffic in the busy streets below. She noticed the room looked bare now Harper was gone. That would probably change once John got settled in although he certainly wasn't taking things easy on his first day. She couldn't see his desk for files and paper.

"Take a seat."

Mickie sat down in the small padded chair in front of the desk. She clutched her hands together and sat them on her lap. She noticed her leg was jiggling nervously. She stopped and hoped John hadn't noticed. He'd sat down in the seat behind his desk. His thick forearms rested on top of the mound of paper. He gave her yet another one of those smiles. She felt the corners of her mouth turn upwards and she bit down on her lip to stop them. The guy thought she was crazy as it is. The last thing she needed was to grin at him like a physco.

"So, we meet yet again."

Mickie nodded her head. She saw the twinkle in his deep blue eyes. He was clearly amused by the whole thing. Shame she didn't feel the same way. Fate had conspired against her. Her sexy stranger was no longer some romantic saviour who would sweep her off her feet. He was a man who could very well kick her ass out of the door. Fuck. And to think she could have taken Rachel's advice and propositioned him for some mind blowing sex last night. That would have made things even more awkward than they already were. Thank God that for once in her life she'd had enough sense and not enough alcohol to have some morals.

"Thank you for pointing me in the right direction by the way."

Mickie tilted her head and stared at him in confusion. John smiled again.

"The dresses. I managed to get one for my sister."

She cleared her throat and shifted in her seat. She could feel the heat rise to her cheeks. "Good. I'm glad."

John picked up a pen and leant back in his chair. He began to flip it between his fingers. She couldn't help but notice how thick they were.

"I take it your shopping trip was successful."

Mickie froze. She quickly glanced away anxiously. Here it was. This was probably the moment she got her marching orders. She swallowed hard bracing herself. She could feel her palms sweating too. She rubbed them on her skirt and slowly looked back up. John was still smiling and it confused her. Wasn't he supposed to look a little bit angry or pissed off? Then again, he was probably taking great delight in having caught her red handed. Shit. The bastard had seen her new underwear too. Maybe if she offered to model it for him, she could persuade him to change his mind. A peep show for not being made homeless seemed like a small price to pay right now.

"You did get something to wear for your party, didn't you?"

Mickie let out a sigh. If he wanted to drag this out, she wasn't in the mood. She just wanted to get it over with and drown her sorrows with the bottle of wine in her refrigerator. She sat forward in her seat. She tucked her hair behind her ear. "Look, why don't you just say what you want to say then I can leave."

John raised his eye brows fractionally. He stopped fiddling with his pen and looked at her curiously. "And what is it you think I want to say?"

Mickie sighed again. She heard a car honk its horn outside. She noticed the sunlight reflect on Johns face. It looked so sexy. Not that she cared. She didn't. She licked her lips. "Well, you obviously brought me in here to fire me so why don't you just get it over with."

John scrunched his nose in confusion. "What the hell made you think I wanted to fire you?"

This time it was Mickie's turn to look confused. Her brown eyes scanned John's face. "Bloomingdales. I did sneak out of work to go shopping for a party."

He threw down his pen on the desk and leant forward in his seat. "Why would I fire you for that?" He clasped his hands together in front of him and grinned.

Mickie shook her head. This time she didn't stop the slow grin from spreading across her face. "Yeah. Very funny. I'm glad you find my stupidity so amusing."

"Actually I used to do the same thing myself."

Mickie looked at him surprised.

"I used to work with this guy called Nick Bateman in the days when I was a junior assistant and learning the ropes." he began to explain. "Every Friday afternoon, there would be a board meeting in our office. All the managers and directors attended. Anyway, we would decide to take advantage of the situation and go for a beer or two. I would call Nick and make up some phoney excuse about an account. We'd disappear for a couple of hours and make it back just before the meeting ended." Paul paused for a second then smiled. "In fact, we thought we were so clever we even invented a name for the account. It was the Blue Moon file."

"And you never got cought?." replied Mickie, smiling.

John laughed. "never".

Mickie grinned and crossed her long legs in front of her. She watched him pick up the pen again and settle back in his chair. He began to flip it once again. It was obviously a habit of his and she found it cute. His blue eyes looked at her but she couldn't read his expression. It reminded her that he was a stranger. A man that up until last night she never even knew existed.

"I have to admit I got a shock when I saw you in the boardroom this morning."

Mickie pressed her lips together in a small smile. "You weren't the only one."

"I mean, I did wonder if our paths might ever cross again but I certainly didn't expect this."

Mickie nodded calmly on the outside while inside, her heart skipped a beat at John's admission. He had been wondering about her. That was practically telling her he had been thinking about her. That she had been on his mind. He sure as hell had been on hers, naked and all. She cleared her throat and mentally scolded herself. Now was not the time to be picturing him in that way. But sweet Jesus she bet he would look good.

"It's not awkward for you, is it?"

Mickie's voice dragged her attention back to their conversation. She quickly shook her head. "Of course not." And it wasn't. Not really. After all, he wasn't going to fire her. She had no reason to feel awkward about him. Well other than the fact she had embarrassed herself with some very drunk rambling. Fuck. She'd told him all about Michael though. Hopefully there was a chance John had forgotten his name. After all, she had talked a lot of nonsense. The guy had probably switched off through boredom. After all, who really listened to drunken crazed lunatics?

"Good. That's why I asked you to come and see me. I just wanted to make sure." said John.

Mickie smiled. "Nope. There's no awkwardness. None at all." She twiddled her thumbs together. She wondered if he could tell she was lying through her teeth. She could still remember the glint in his eye when he had noticed the lingerie. At least she had been spared the indignity of having to bribe him with it.

John smiled as he pushed back his chair. "In that case, I'll let you get back to work"

Mickie smiled as she stood up. Her hands straightened her black suit jacket. She watched as Paul walked around his desk and opened the door for her. It looked like the guy was also a gentleman. He was definitely too good to be true.

"I'll see you at the meeting at five?" John asked as she walked past him.

Mickie nodded and mentally worked out the seating plan as she heard the door close behind her and she walked back down the corridor. Maybe she could get there early and ensure she sat beside him. Christ, she really was becoming pathetic. She sat back down at her desk and ignored the inquisitive looks thrown her way. She could picture Mary's face now. Her little piggy eyes would be popping out of her head. She clicked to clear the screensaver then suddenly she remembered. Her brown eyes widened. Michael would be at the same meeting this afternoon. Shit. Why the hell had she opened her mouth to a stranger and why didn't John just ignore her tears last night. She would just have to pray that somehow John didn't remember his name. Otherwise things would really get awkward. That's if they weren't awkward enough already.

* * *

**Hey guys! i Was just going over my reviews and im sorry i am confusing you but i have a sister name stephanie and when i'm writing im somtimes talking to her and get disracted. I will try and fixing that. Thanks guys, youre the best.**

** -SR**


	4. Chapter 4

As Mickie made it to the top of the staircase she suddenly she froze in her tracks. Her manicured hand clutched the brass banister.

"Sure. I'll take a look at it."

Her brown eyes went wide. It was him. It was John's voice. She would recognise that smooth husky tone anywhere. She poked her head around the corner to check. Shit. There he was standing right in front of the door she was about to go through. The last thing she needed was to add tardiness to his list of excuses to fire her. She ducked back round hiding behind the partition wall. Did he really have to be standing right there? He had a damn office. Why the hell wasn't he in there instead of blocking her path and making her even later than she already was? Of course she could always just quickly walk past him and not catch his eye. He was busy with someone. He'd probably not even notice she was there.

Mickie pulled on her lip with her teeth as she tried to pluck up the courage to move. She gazed down towards the floor. Her eyes widened as she spotted the corner of her magazine poking out of her bag. She smiled to herself as she pulled it out. It was total genius. She'd walk past John with her face buried in the magazine and he wouldn't even realise it was her. Mickie opened up her Vogue and stepped out into the corridor. As she walked to the offices, she engrossed herself in the article on the page she had opened it at. It listed ninety nine things to do to a naked man. She smirked to herself. If she ever found John naked, her list would far exceed ninety nine. In fact the list of things she would do to that man would be endless. Number fifty three looked interesting. _Drag me into the bathroom at a restruant for some hot, dirty, stand-up sex. _She wondered if John frequented with something like that. Maybe she could offer to drag him there in return for keeping her job.

"Damn it!"

Fuck. She'd run into someone. Mickie slowly lowered the magazine. Jack was in front of her rubbing down his shirt and she grimaced. Dark coffee stained the crumpled blue cotton. He held the remainder of his hot drink in his left hand. She quickly glanced around. Thankfully there was no sign of John.

"Mickie, why the hell don't you watch where you are going?"

"I'm sorry." she mumbled. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Mary over by Sandy's cubicle watching her. Bitch. She wondered how smug she would look if she marched over and slapped that smirk right from her face.

"Never mind the apology. Where have you been? You missed the meeting this morning." ranted Jack as he pushed his wire rimmed glasses up his nose.

Mickie's brown eyes stared at him blankly.

Jack shook his head and sighed heavily. "You were listening when we announced it at the meeting on Friday, weren't you?"

She paused for a second before she quickly nodded her head. "Of course I was." she lied. As she quickly made her way to her desk, she racked her brain to see if she could remember anything being said about a meeting. Of course it would have helped if she had actually been paying attention but her mind had been on something else. Or rather someone else who happened to be a gorgeous six foot plus hunk. As she dumped her bag on the floor, she heard her voice behind her and turned round.

"Mickie, there you are!"

Rachel was rushing towards her, her face pink with excitement. Mickie smiled curiously. She wondered if her friend's complexion was the reason why no-one had heard from her this weekend. She'd left her a message on her cell phone on Friday afternoon to say she wouldn't make it for a drink but she never left an explanation why.

"I really need to go over an article with you." she said eagerly. Her brown eyes were wide as she hung around the edge of her cubicle.

Mickie nodded and her eyes darted guiltily around the office as she picked up her leather bag again. No-one was even paying them any attention. Of course they had no clue about their secret code for skipping work. She suddenly froze by the small filing cabinet as she remembered that John did. If he came looking for her and anyone mentioned where she had gone, he would know exactly where they were. She saw Jack at Mary's desk looking curiously over in their direction. She quickly shook her head and her bag thumped to the floor. "I don't think that will be possible this morning. I've got a lot to do."

Rachel looked at her in surprise. "But Mick, I really need your help with this one. It's a huge article."

"I can't. I'm sorry." Micke forced a smile.

"Please? It won't take long. I promise to be quick."

Mickie's eyes stared at Rachel to somehow make her understand. "I honestly can't. Maybe some other time."

"Mickie."

She nearly jumped at the harsh tone of Jack's voice. His brow was furrowed and he wore a pissed off expression on his face. Just a typical Monday morning then.

"Go with Rachel, will you? We don't to listen to the pair of you arguing all day. Then maybe once you've sorted out the article you might actually feel like doing some work around here."

Mickie offered him a contrite smile and felt the heat rise to her cheeks as she bent down to pick up her bag. Slinging it over her shoulder, she followed Rachel through the now silent office. Practically every member of staff stared at them. She could feel Mary's piggy eyes practically boring a hole through her back. Jack was a fucking asshole. He wouldn't know the meaning of the word quiet if it jumped up and bit him on the ass.

As they walked along the corridor, that was when Mickie saw him. Fuck. She grabbed Rachel's arm stopping them in their tracks. The blood pounded in her ears as John walked in their direction. He hadn't noticed them yet. He was leafing through the papers he held in his hand. His head was slightly bowed.

"What is it?" asked Rachel as she looked at her friend in confusion. She followed Mickie's line of vision. Her lips parted in surprise as she saw the man walking towards him. "Holy shit." she said in a hushed whisper. "Is that who I think it is?"

Mickie nodded as her gaze remained fixated on John. He had stopped by the elevator. She was praying for some miraculous intervention that would make him get in the damn thing and remain oblivious to them standing there.

"How the hell….."

"Shhh!" hissed Mickie interrupting her friend. Her eyes quickly darted between John and the staircase. Shit. He was moving again. Maybe if they ran fast enough, they could make it down the stairs before he spotted them. She was about to whisper her plan to Rachel when John lifted his head. Her stomach dropped. His blue eyes gave them a quizzical look as he approached them.

"Good morning ladies."

"Good morning." Rachel beamed.

"Morning." Mickie mumbled. She couldn't look John in the eye. Instead she allowed herself to stare in the direction of his chest. He had on a navy blue suit today. It looked even more expensive than the one he wore last week. His white shirt looked new and crisp. She wondered if he had a girlfriend who had lovingly ironed it for him this morning. She knew he wasn't married. He had admitted as much on their fateful train trip together. But there was no way on earth a man like him was single. He couldn't be. John could have his pick of women. He was absolutely fucking gorgeous. Hell, he probably had a different one banging down his door every night of the week. Lucky bitches.

"Mickie and I were just going to discuss an important article." blurted Rachel.

Mickie quickly whipped her head round and glared at her friend. Her face flushed red. Had she lost her damn mind? Rachel knew who John was. She obviously remembered him from Bloomingdales. Would it be too much to ask that she could remember the damn conversation? After all, she was the one that had happily bragged to John about their secret code. A secret code that Rachel had come up with in the first place. All of a sudden, she wasn't feeling so guilty about ruining her friend's sweater. It could rot in her drawer now for all she cared.

"In that case I'd better not keep you." replied John as he shifted the papers in his hands. Mickie stood there almost afraid to move as he walked past them. She was getting away with it. John obviously didn't remember. Thank God! For once it looked like luck just might be on her side. She began to walk with Rachel, who was making her way to the staircase.

"Mickie."

She felt a spasm of panic as she heard John call her name. She silently cursed as she slowly turned round to face him.

"Once you've finished going over those articles, can you come and see me in my office?"

Mickie felt her whole body prickle. She stared at him for a few seconds unable to speak. His blue eyes were twinkling at her. He looked almost amused. Fuck. He knew. He definitely knew. The bastard was teasing her. She swallowed hard.

"Half an hour okay with you?"

Mickie managed to nod her head. She nervously cleared her throat. "That's fine." she squeaked, her voice trembling slightly. She slowly turned round as she made her way to the stairs. The blood was pounding in her ears. She had half an hour before she was undoubtedly read the riot act. She wondered if Starbucks was hiring. Maybe she would check it out while she was there…..

Half an hour later Mickie's stomach was churning anxiously as she approached John's office. She glanced at her watch. It had been exactly thirty minutes and John would be waiting on her. Shit. She hadn't even been able to enjoy her coffee and muffin. She'd left them practically untouched. She felt sick every time she thought about John and what he was going to say to her. But at the same time she'd also been totally gobsmacked by Rachel's news. Apparently Tim, her new man of the moment, had proposed to her over the weekend. He'd whisked her away to a hotel and popped the question over a romantic dinner. Rachel had said yes. Mickie had asked her if she had lost her marbles. They'd only been dating for a short space of time. So short that Mickie hadn't even met the guy of the moment.

"Hey Mickie"

Mickie jumped at the sound of her voice. She smiled at John's very pregnant secretary. "Hi Lindsey."

Lindsey stood up and picked up a bundle of papers from her desk. Mickie's eyes went wide as she took in her size. She was huge. Her bump looked like a giant beach ball against her thin and wispy frame. The poor girl looked like she was about to burst but apparently the baby wasn't due for another six weeks yet. God help her when it came to giving birth. She wondered if Harper would be by her side when she did. Lindsey handed her the bundle of papers in her hand.

"John is waiting for you. Can you give him these for me?"

Mickie nodded as she took the papers.

"Just go in." the small secretary said bubbly. Mickie felt like slapping her. How could she be so damn cheery at a time like this? She was about to face the firing line. Cheery was the last thing she was feeling. She approached the door slowly and her hand tentatively gripped the shiny handle. She hesitated for a second and muttered a silent prayer. Taking a calming breath, she walked into the office.

John was sitting at his desk. It was crammed with paper and was even more cluttered than it was on Friday. She noticed a tall plant in the corner of the room. It was new. It was a vicas. It was the exact same plant she used to have at home before she had to issue the last rites and chuck it out due to neglect. Mickie's soft brown met his and his warm and friendly blue eyes Mickie felt herself relax just the tiniest bit. Maybe he wasn't about to kick her ass. Or maybe he was just reeling her in before going for the kill.

"Hello." said John.

"Hello." she replied. She shifted her feet and shoved the papers towards him. "Lindsey asked me to bring these to you."

John smiled as he pushed back his chair and stood up. He took the papers from her hand. Their fingertips brushed together ever so slightly. Mickie almost jumped out of her skin as she still managed to breathe him in. He was wearing that cologne again. The smell almost made her weak at the knees. It was intoxicating. She wondered what he would do if she were to bury her face in his neck and just inhale deeply.

"Thanks although God knows where I'm going to put them." he said. He looked around him briefly before dumping them on top of the filing cabinet. "Take a seat." he said gesturing towards the chair.

Mickie sat down. When she looked up, John was back behind his desk. Her clammy hands rested on her thighs. There were tight little knots in her stomach. She had decided on the way back from Starbucks that she was going to be honest. It was probably the best policy especially if she had any chance of keeping her job. If that failed, she wasn't totally against suggesting the dirty sex in the bar. After all, it wouldn't exactly be a hardship. She could also offer to wear the lingerie. She was prepared to do absolutely anything. She just couldn't contemplate not working here. "I want to apologise for this morning." she said beginning their conversation. "I promise it won't happen again."

John raised his eyebrows as he watched her intently. "Which part? Missing the meeting or going to Starbucks when you should be working?"

Mickie's face was hot. It was probably flushed bright red. "Both. I'm really sorry. I can assure you it will be the last time I will ever do such a thing." She glanced down briefly at her hands and cleared her throat. When she looked back up, John was staring at her and she felt her body tremble slightly. "I love my job. I am totally committed to it. I'm totally committed to this company. I'll do anything to make it up to you."

"Anything, huh?" John asked, his mouth twitching.

Mickie nodded emphatically. "Anything."

John was silent for a few seconds as he just looked at her. He licked his lips. Mickie wondered what he would say if he even guessed the lengths she was prepared to go to. Especially when he just bit his lip. Sweet Jesus.

"Lindsey is leaving us at the end of the week. I'd like to organise a little party for her. Think you can help arrange that with me?"

Mickie felt her shoulders sag with relief as she instantly relaxed. He wanted her to organise a party with him. John obviously wasn't going to fire her. Her job was safe. And, as a bonus, she would get to spend some time with him as they went over the details for the small get together. This had gone so much better than she could have imagined. "Sure." she nodded.

"Good." He rested his hands together on the desk. "So, the people in the office seem like a good lot."

"They are."

"And it was nice to have the chance to be introduced to people from other departments at the meeting on Friday."

Mickie's breathing stopped as she stared back at John silently. Shit. He was going to bring up Michael. She just knew he was. Suddenly she could feel herself tense up once more and she rubbed her sweaty palms against her skirt.

"It must have been awkward for you."

Mickie's mouth went dry as he watched her carefully.

"Having Michael there, I mean."

She lifted her hand and nervously pushed her hair back from her face. She didn't want to discuss Michael with John. For some reason, it made her feel extremely uncomfortable. It was just a pity that in hindsight she hadn't felt that way on the damn train instead of rambling on about him like a drunken idiot.

"It must be hard seeing him on a day to day basis when you still care about him like you do." continued John.

"Actually you're wrong." Mickie snapped defiantly. "I don't care about Michael and seeing him in the office is definitely not a problem." She let out a shaky breath as she tossed back her hair. She knew her tone was harsh but he had rattled her. This conversation was making her feel extremely uneasy.

For a few a moments John just stared at her saying nothing and she shifted in her seat. She heard the sound of the traffic through the open window. The sun shone brightly into the room and she couldn't help but notice how the flecks of light shone through his hair.

"Good. I'm glad." he replied eventually, smiling gently.

"In fact, I've decided that mixing my personal and professional lives is a definite no-no from now on." she blurted out although she wasn't entirely sure why. Maybe it was because she wanted John to know she wasn't risking her job on no uncertain terms.

His reply was a nod as his soft hair brushed across his shoulders. "That's great although I'm sure the most of the male population of the building will be disappointed to hear that." Mickie's heart gave a small flip. It was on the tip of her tongue to ask John if he was disappointed. After all he must think she was sort of pretty to making that kind of statement. Or maybe he just felt sorry for her. She mentally kicked herself. Shit, damn and blast it. What had she done? If there was any remote chance of getting with John she'd just gone and ruined it. Not that there was much of a chance to begin with. She fancied the pants off him but she was nothing more than an employee as far as he was concerned. He'd certainly done nothing to show her otherwise.

"Anyway, I'm glad you can help me out with Lindsey's party. I'm not very good at that sort of thing."

"It's not a problem." Mickie replied as she smiled at him softly. "If she's leaving on Friday though, we really need to discuss it today."

Mickie nodded as he glanced up at the clock on the wall. "Unfortunately though I've got a meeting in five minutes. In fact, I'm tied up in the meetings for the rest of the day." He sat back as he picked his silver pen up from his desk. He began to flip it through his thick fingers as he looked at her with an unreadable expression on his face. "Unless of course you wanted to…"

"What?" Mickie asked almost too quickly as his voice trailed off. Her brown eyes were wide. For some reason her heart was pounding wildly in her chest.

"Well I was thinking or rather I was wondering…" He paused again. Mickie sat on the edge of her chair. She practically wanted to scream at him to spit it out. He was taking forever to ask her. In the meantime, her heart was in danger of thumping itself right out of her ribcage.

"Would you like to go for a drink after work and discuss it then?"

Mickie's lips parted. Oh my God. John was asking her out. Okay, it wasn't technically asking her out but he wanted to meet her outside their normal working hours. And they were going for a drink to a bar when he could very well have discussed the party in the comfort of his own office. She bit down on her lip. She wanted to grin like mad but she would probably scare him off. She was quite sure he wouldn't want a drink with a lunatic. She replied when she felt she was finally able to speak. "Sure."

"You don't have anything already planned do you?"

Mickie shook her head. Her plans had involved doing laundry which was currently heaped in the basket and had spilled over to the foot of her bed. She had put it off for a week. Another night wasn't going to make a bit of difference.

"Good. I should be done here around six. Is that okay with you?" asked John as he put down his pen.

Mickie nodded as she stood up from her seat. She smoothed down her skirt and smiled. "I've got plenty of work I need to catch up on anyway."

"Then I'll see you at six." he said, his blue eyes sparkling at her.

"Six it is." she replied. She looked at him for a moment before she shyly glanced away and left his office. She passed Lindsey who was on the telephone. She gave her a wave as she made her way back to the office. She tried to keep calm but every five seconds a huge grin spread across her face. Her stomach fluttered with excitement. She was going for a drink with John. God bless Harper William and his hormones. Because of him she was getting to spend time with the man who, in all honesty, had turned her whole world upside down from the moment she had met him. Fate had intervened and had decided to bring him into her life. Who was she to argue with that? She was going to grab this opportunity with both hands. She was going to charm the pants off John Cena, figuratively speaking of course. She wasn't going to blow this chance to spend time with him. She just couldn't. It simply wasn't an option for her.

* * *

**Oh my gosh, guys i am about to cry. I keep messing up and i don't notice until my reviews. Paul is my boyfriend and helps me write these. I get easily disracted and right his or my sisters names. I am so sorry and i will try my best to stop being stupid. - SR**


	5. Chapter 5

Mickie's mouth twitched upwards as Rachel pushed her glasses to the top of her head. Her brow was furrowed in concentration as she stood directly in front of Mickie. "We need a little more cleavage." Her manicured fingers unfastened a button on her shirt. She reached across into her bag which had been dumped on the ledge in front of them.

Mickie smiled as she shuffled round to face Rachel . She was rummaging in her bag again. She smiled triumphantly as she pulled out a hair clip. "Pin up your hair and I'll find some lip gloss."

Mickie reached up and gathered her chestnut strands together. Personally, she hated wearing her up but she wasn't about to argue with Rachel The woman was clearly on a mission. If she wanted to keep her head firmly attached to her body, it was in her best interests just to agree.

"Mickie, I am so excited. You are totally going to knock him dead." Rachel reached up and began to pull a few strands of hair to frame Mickie's face. She stepped back and smiled as she admired her handiwork. "Now all we need is the perfume."

Mickie's brown eyes went wide as her friend once again delved into her bag. She pulled out a pink floral bottle which she eyed up suspiciously. "What is that?"

Rachel grinned almost manically as she removed the lid from the bottle. "This, my dear, is my secret weapon. fresh & fierce pink body perfume. One sniff of this and he'll be putty in your hands."

Mickie sniffed the air as Rachel applied the perfume behind her ears and on her wrists. "That's gorgeous." she beamed.

"Rub your wrists together." said Rachel as she bent over to the side and chuckling quietly to herself, she sprayed the perfume directly up Mickies skirt. "Just a final blast for luck."

Mickie burst into laughter.

"Well, you never know. A girl needs to be prepared for every eventuality."

"It's work related, remember. We're only having a drink to discuss Lindsey's party."

Mickie snorted in disbelief as she picked up her bag. She licked her finger and absently wiped at a mark on the shiny black leather. "Lindsey finishes at five. You could have easily discussed it in his office." She slung the bag across her shoulder and grinned at her friend. "The man is clearly into you. He's found a perfect opportunity to get to know you a little better."

Mickie shook her head adamantly as she turned to check her reflection in the mirror. She had to admit the person staring back at her wasn't all that bad. Her skin was glowing and for once, her hair didn't look a mess. She still wasn't sure about the scarf though. If one single person uttered the words trolley dolly in her direction, it was getting yanked off faster that you could say take off. "You're wrong Rach. John sees me as an employee, nothing more." She picked up her own bag from the ledge and followed Rachel towards the door.

"Trust me, Micks, by tomorrow morning you'll be singing a different tune." Rachel pushed open the door and stood aside to let Mickie pass. She smiled at her widely. "My secret weapon is flawless, you know. By the end of the night, you'll be fighting off his advances."

Mickie rolled her eyes as she made her way into the deserted corridor. Her heels clicked against the marble floor. Rachel was obviously delusional. One spray of perfume didn't make her irresistible and not to a man who probably thought she was bordering on psychotic. Not to mention the fact that she constantly found herself in embarrassing situations every time she was within ten feet of the guy. Nope, there was no chance in hell John Cena was even remotely interested in her. She was an employee helping him out. It was nothing more than that. But still she couldn't help the small bubbles of excitement forming in the pit of her stomach. A girl could always dream and what a dream it would be if those soft sweet lips of his found themselves firmly attached to hers.

"Right, I'm going to head home. My Mom is coming over tonight and the place is like a tornado came by." said Rachel.

She pulled Mickie into a hug and smiled at her. She slowly backed away towards the stairs. "Have a good time tonight and remember I want all the details in the morning."

"Goodnight Rachel." Stephanie replied as she lifted her hand in a wave watching until she disappeared. Making her way back to the office, she sniffed at her wrist inhaling the floral scent.

"Oh, you are still here."

Mickie groaned inwardly as Mary's head popped up from her cubicle. Trust her to still be there when she was meeting John in a couple of minutes. Didn't the bitch have a home to go to? Then again, those huge nostrils of hers probably smelled gossip a mile off. She seemed to have built-in radar when it came to these sorts of things. If she found out they were going for a drink, the news would be all over the office by the time she'd even made it in the door tomorrow morning. Business related or not, Mary the big Mouth would have a field day with the news.

"John has been looking for you."

"Thanks." Mickie forced a smile in her direction and made her way to her desk. The office was unusually quiet. No-one else was here. One of the things she loved about this place was the constant buzz of activity. But tonight she was more than happy to see that everyone had gone home. Well almost everyone. She scowled as she thought of Mary. Dumping her bag on the floor, she switched off her computer. She felt a wave of relief as she turned round to see Mary pull on her coat.

"Well goodnight, Mickie."

"Goodnight." she called out as she pretended to be busy with the file in her hand. There would no doubt be a smug expression on her face. She wouldn't give her the satisfaction of even looking in her direction. The sound of Mary's footsteps echoed down the corridor. Mickie threw the file on her desk.

"There you are"

Mickie visibly jumped as his deep tone startled her. She spun round on her heel. She swallowed thickly as John grinned in her direction. His blue eyes twinkled at her. She felt her heart begin to thump wildly against her rib cage.

"So, are you ready to go or do you need more time?"

"No, I'm done." Mickie replied as she grabbed her black coat from the back of her chair. She put it on and picked up her bag.

"There's a bar just down the block. I thought we could go there."

Mickie nodded her head as she followed him out of the office. She knew the place he meant and she knew it would be free from prying eyes. It was Monday night which meant no-one from the office would be there to see them. Although she would have gotten a smug sense of satisfaction to be seen walking in with John. He was the hot topic of conversation amongst the females in the building who practically drooled every time his name was mentioned.

"After you." said John as he stepped aside to let her down the marble staircase.

Mickie smiled as she brushed past him silently cursing his need to be polite. She wouldn't have minded following him down the steps in the least. Any chance she could get to stare at the perfect ass of his. It looked so firm and squeezable. She bet it would fit nicely in her hands. As she went to push the heavy glass door, she felt John open it behind her. She tilted her head to mutter her thank you catching the intoxicating smell of his cologne. As usual, he smelled amazing. She wondered if he considered it his secret weapon because God knows, one sniff of him and she was putty in his hands.

As they made their way along the tree lined street, they talked casually about the office. Mickie felt herself smiling as she walked beside John. Every person they passed, she found herself wanting to scream and point "Look I'm with him." Maybe even the people that passed them actually thought they looked good together. So good, in fact, that they thought they were a genuine couple. Okay, they weren't holding hands but they didn't need public displays of affection. No-one wanted to see people slobbering over one another in the street.

Mickie hadn't noticed how cold it was outside until they walked into the bar. The heat instantly hit her, warming up her cheeks. She loosened her coat a little as she followed John to an empty table. Low music played from the jukebox in the corner. There were a number of people scattered around the large dimly lit room.

"Grab a seat and I'll go to the bar." said John as he pulled out a chair. Mickie smiled at him gratefully as she removed her coat and placed it across the back of the seat. "What can I get you to drink?" he asked as she sat down at the small wooden table.

"Can I have a beer?"

"Ah a girl that likes beer, i like it"

John smiled and nodded and she watched him make his way to the bar quietly screaming of joy inside. She let out a calming breath as her stomach fluttered wildly. Christ, she was nervous which was ridiculous if you thought about it. They weren't on a date. It was just business for goodness sakes. But it was John and the man had no problem of getting her flustered. She could only imagine what it actually felt like to run your fingers through his short blonde hair. And his skin? God! Touching that would be incredible. His hand had been so soft that one time she had held it. What if the rest of his body was like that? It would be so firm too. That man was built. He was her idea of perfection. Mickie sighed softly and glanced away. She rested her hands on the chipped table as she mentally chastised herself. She had to stop thinking like this otherwise she'd be liable to jump him the minute he got back. She'd never been attracted to anyone so badly in her life. He was driving her crazy. He had done since the moment they met on that train.

"Here we go. One beer for the lady."

Mickie lifted her head and smiled as John placed the glass down in front of her. Her brown eyes widened as she noticed her upturned palms. She quickly flipped them over and picked up her bottle. Her body was sending out signals without her even realising. As she took a mouthful of beer, John sat in the seat across from her. He'd removed his suit jacket and his white shirt sleeves were rolled up. She found herself staring at his thick forearms. She still couldn't get over the size of them. They were definitely the biggest she had seen.

"So, have you had any thoughts about this party?"

The party. Shit. She'd forgotten about that. Of course it was the reason they were here but as she watched John sip his beer she realised it was the last thing on her mind. Her brown eyes seemed to be mesmerised by him. It was pretty pathetic really. Here she was, a grown woman, and she was getting giddy over the way his throat moved when he swallowed. She had to get a grip. She deliberately moved her eyes away. She had been staring at him for so long he probably thought she was bordering on creepy. She nervously cleared her throat as she placed down her bottle of beer. "The party? Yes. I've had a few ideas."

"And?" he asked smiling as his long fingers picked at the label on his beer bottle.

Mickie almost smiled but she bit down on her lip to stop herself. It's a scientific fact that men who picked at labels were sexually frustrated. John obviously wasn't getting the satafaction or any at all. There was something about that that pleased her somewhat. If he asked nicely, she'd be more than willing to help him out in that department.

"Are you going to share them with me?" he prompted.

Mickie nodded her head as she mentally gave herself a shake. "Of course."

"Good."

"Where do you want me to start?"

He swallowed his drink and smiled. "Well, have you thought of where to hold it? The office? Somewhere else?"

"Actually I know the perfect place and Lindsey absolutely loves it." she replied as she proceeded to tell John her ideas...

The sky was black and scattered with stars when they left the train station. Mickie shivered in the cold breeze and her fingers fumbled with the buttons on her coat. Her head was pleasantly buzzing. She'd had four bottles of beer and on an empty stomach. All she'd eaten all day was an apple first thing this morning. But as she glanced over at John, she realised food was the last thing on her mind. She'd had an amazing time tonight. After the first drink, they'd finished discussing the party. She had been pleasantly surprised when John had suggesting having another. She had thought he would be eager to leave and go home but a second drink had turned into four as they chatted to one another about everything and anything. He'd asked her questions about herself and had seemed genuinely interested as he listened to her answers. She'd discovered he had 3 brothers and went four times a week to the gym. He was so easy to talk to and really funny too. At one point her sides had hurt, she had laughed so hard. And now he was walking her home. His stop had been before hers but he had insisted on escorting her personally to her door. She smiled as they made their way along the busy street. The lights from the stores shone brightly on their faces.

"I'm just at the end of this road." said Mickie as a car rumbled past them. Johns's shoulder brushed against hers. Mickie's breath caught in her throat as she felt his hand. His chilled fingers brushed against hers sending a tingle of excitement down her spine. Slowly they entwined themselves around hers joining their hands together. She felt her heart race in her chest. She bit down on her lip in an attempt not to grin like an idiot. Neither one of them spoke as her heels clicked in time with his footsteps. John's grip was firm. She could feel his thumb lightly trace her own. His hand felt so soft and warm. He would be lucky to get it back because quite frankly she had no intentions of letting it go. But all too soon they had arrived at her doorstep and her stomach still bubbled with excitement as she stood in front of him, facing him.

"Well, this is me." she said as her brown eyes scanned his face. "Thank you for bringing me home."

"You're welcome." replied John, his husky tone sending a tingle down her spine. "I wouldn't be able to sleep tonight if I didn't know you got back safe." His thumb lightly traced her knuckle. His blue eyes pulled her in.

"Well I could have called you and saved you having another trip on the train."

John nodded "But secretly, I like the rides. Sometimes you come across some pretty interesting people." He winked at her. Mickie swallowed thickly. "And besides, walking you home was a selfish ploy on my part."

"It was?" she asked and she licked her lips. Her heart was thumping wildly against her ribcage. She was so sure he was going to kiss her. God, she wanted him too so much.

"It was." said John as he placed her finger underneath her chin. "If I didn't walk you home, I wouldn't get to do this."

He leant forward and brushed his lips softly against hers. Mickie let a sigh escape from her mouth as her eyes closed and she melted into his kiss. His lips felt so warm and they tasted faintly of beer. She could feel her body throb. Her head was starting to spin. It was a perfect first kiss. One she had never dreamt would actually happen. As John pulled slowly away, her eyelids fluttered open. Her mouth was still wet. She could still feel him on her lips.

"I should let you get inside. You'll freeze standing out here."

Mickie nodded slowly. As well as feeling breathless, she'd lost the ability to speak. Or maybe she was just stopping herself from being tempted to ask John to stay. Not that there would be anything wrong with that if she did. It was normal behaviour to ask the man who walked you home if he wanted a cup of coffee. After all, it was common courtesy. And God, she wanted him to stay. She wanted him to stay with every fibre of her being. But she didn't want him to get the wrong impression and with everything that happened with Michael, she wasn't going to rush this, whatever this actually was.

"Goodnight Mickie." said John as he gently let go of her hand, their fingertips grazing together.

"Goodnight John." she replied.

He smiled and turned around. She watched his massive frame make his way down the brightly lit street.

She bit down on her lip anxiously as her blue eyes followed him. Her hand fumbled in her bag as she rummaged for her keys. As her fingers wrapped around them, she saw him glance back in her direction and winked. She casually waved at him while inside her heart had skipped a beat. She watched him until she knew he had safely disappeared around the corner before she began to jump around excitedly in front of the house. "Yes!" she cried as she punched her hand triumphantly in the air. John liked her. Maybe Lady Luck wasn't such a bitch after all.


	6. Chapter 6

Mickie made her way to the coffee machine in the corner of the office. She tucked her hair behind her ear and tried to ignore Mary who was scoping her out from the safety of her desk. No doubt she was salivating at the fact she was having two cups of coffee within the space of ten minutes. She was probably e-mailing Jack this very second to tell him. Stupid bitch! Mickie picked up the tall coffee pot. As she poured the hot liquid her mind turned once again to John. Where was he? That was what she wanted to know. It was almost ten. He should have been here well over an hour ago. She'd even turned up early herself in the hope of catching him while the office had been empty. Instead she had been subjected to the robery of a Range Rover that happended last night. What a morning. The only chance of it improving would be John walking through the door. Although what she would say to him she didn't have a clue. All she knew was that she was desperate to see him. She couldn't stop thinking about the kiss they had shared last night. God knows she could remember every detail like the way his lips had felt soft and warm. It had been so tender and sweet and had left her needing and wanting more. The question was did John want more? That was something else that had kept her tossing and turning in bed and as she had lain staring up at the moonlit ceiling, she analysed his every action. Yes John had been the one to offer to walk her home. He had also been the one to initiate things between them when he had shyly taken her hand in his. And yes, he had kissed her but it didn't necessarily mean something was going to happen. He could even regret his actions. Maybe that was why he was late. Maybe he was avoiding her while he thought of a way to let her down gently. That would be the more likely scenario. After all, she was cursed when it came to men. She seemed to only attract bastards or adulterating scum like Micahel. She never got the good ones, the caring and considerate type. The type she considered John Cena to be.

"Are you planning on standing and daydreaming all day?"

Jack's voice jolted her from her thoughts. Mickie shook her head, clearing her throat and placed down the coffee pot. She noticed she had spilled some. A drop of dark liquid dribbled down the side of her Styrofoam cup. She lifted it up and caught it with her manicured finger.

"Good. The creative department have the final for the Stand For Cancer article. I said I would send someone to collect them for our meeting this afternoon. You can go."

Mickie rolled her eyes as Jack walked back to his desk and took a mouthful of coffee. He obviously thought she had nothing better to do than waste her precious time running around after him. She'd remind him of that when he shouted at her later looking for the car theft article that she would probably be late handing in. Asshole!

"Go now, please Mickie!" Jack called out across the office.

She cursed him under her breath as she slammed down her coffee and strode out along the corridor, her heels clicking against the marble. She forced a smile at a few staff members from personnel who were gathered in a group near the elevators. Her hand angrily smacked the button as she waited impatiently. Who the fuck did that man think he was? He was constantly on her back needling her. Mickie scowled and folded her arms across her chest as the doors slid open. Her head was bowed as she walked in and muttering under her breath, she selected the top floor.

"Going my way?"

Her hair bristled on the back of her neck as she heard his deep voice behind her. She swallowed thickly as she spun on her heel to face him. He was with his leaning against the back wall looking amazing in his expensive dark grey suit. The man always looked a million bucks. Just the sight of him made her shiver inside. His blue eyes were sparkling as he flashed his gorgeous smile at her. Her heart skipped a beat as the blood beat loudly in her ears. "John." she breathed.

"Not skipping out to shop I hope?" he teased.

She could feel the heat flush her cheeks as she shyly shook her head. Her hands nervously smoothed down her black and blue skirt. "I've seen the error of my ways." she smiled.

Her chest rose and fell with her breathing. Her brown eyes were mesmerised by him. No one had ever had this affect on her before. Just looking at John made her body tingle and every thought imaginable rushed through her head. Most of them involved him in a state of undress of course. As she stood watching him, she mentally begged him to say something, anything that showed he had enjoyed last night. That he didn't regret it and that he wasn't going to call her to his office this morning and tell her it had been a mistake.

"Good. I wouldn't want my staff slacking off in my absence."

"I wouldn't dream of it." she replied, forcing a brighter smile. Her eyes darted quickly to the red digital numbers above the elevator buttons. They were on the eighth floor. John needed to say something quick. He would be getting off soon. The button for the eleventh floor was lit up. It was obviously his stop unless she discreetly found a way to press the emergency button. Then they would be trapped together. She would be stuck in an enclosed space with John Cena. Now that was no hardship! Not to mention the fact the conversation would have to come up sooner or later. He would have to mention the kiss at some point. Maybe he would even kiss her again. Shit they were on the ninth floor now. She was running out of time!

Mickie turned her head slightly and allowed herself to look at John. She blushed as she caught his eye. He was standing there watching her. Didn't he realise he was wasting valuable time here? Obviously not.

"Did you manage to sort out the arrangements we discussed for Lindsey's party?" asked Paul as he took a step towards her.

Mickie licked her lips tasting her apple lip balm. Finally. Here we go. "Yes. I did it this morning."

"Thanks Micks. I appreciate it." he smiled.

"No problem." she replied. John took another step towards her. God, he was so close now. She inhaled the heavenly scent of his cologne. Just then the elevator doors pinged open. John smiled.

"I have to go. I have a meeting with accounts."

Mickie felt disappointment at his businesslike tone. She swallowed thickly as she watched him leave. Her stomach fluttered as he waved at her before the doors closed over. Only when the elevator began to move did she let out the breath she had been holding. Her whole body was throbbing where he had touched her when he brushed past her. This was crazy. One kiss and she was totally besotted with the man. Although who was she kidding? She had been besotted with John the moment she had met him. It was just a pity that her feelings were probably unrequited. John had been so cool standing there. It was if nothing had happened between them. If he felt even a shred of what she felt, he couldn't have acted that way could he? Mickie sighed and wearily rubbed her forehead. God, she was so confused. Her head hurt trying to figure it all out. One thing was for certain, she would be damned if she was going to throw herself at the man. If he wanted to play cool, she could do cool. She'd just have to keep this attraction or whatever it was under control. It couldn't be that hard surely? John might be a good looking guy but she'd been around good looking men before and she hadn't thrown herself at any of them. Okay, they didn't have those deep blue eyes that you could find yourself getting lost in or a smile that made your legs tremble and turn to jelly. And they most definitely didn't have a voice that made you melt or smell so incredible that you could imagine spending hours with your head buried in his neck.

Mickie tucked a lock of hair behind her ear as she leant against the elevator wall. She might as well face the fact that she was obviously fated to find him sexy as hell and who was she to mess with fate? But God help her if John went and kissed her a second time. She would be absolutely and totally done...

* * *

"Mickie! Get your ass into this meeting."

Snarling and hitting the enter key a little more forcefully than usual, Mickie pushed back her chair and grabbed her folders from her desk. She silently uttered a list of expletives all aimed in Jack's direction. He really was a bastard today. He was even more arrogant than usual. Of course he'd let the power go to his head. With John tied up for most of the day, Jack had been left in charge. And didn't she know it. He'd been constantly on her back. Okay, she hadn't got the advert done but how the fuck was she meant to concentrate with him on her back every five seconds? If he wasn't careful, she'd rip off his balls and feed them through the shredder.

As Mickie got her things together, she glanced over in the direction of the small board room. Every one appeared to be in their seats although she couldn't see John. He was meant to be there this afternoon but who the hell actually knew? Not that she cared of course. After all, she was playing it cool. She would be the perfect example of calm and collected.

"Yeah, we want an article we can use for the entire range of reading products."

Mickie's brown eyes widened at the sound of his voice. Fuck. It was John. He was talking on his cell phone. Without thinking, she ducked her head behind the wall of her cubicle. Although why she had, she didn't have a clue. It was hardly the actions of a woman in control. As his voice disappeared, she slowly peered over the partition and watched his large frame as he walked past the glass. John was in the meeting. Shit. She needed to get her ass in there. Hastily scooping her belongings into her arms, she briskly walked towards the board room. As she got to the door, she paused and let out a calming breath. She had to remember cool. Mickie flicked her hair and held her head up high as she strolled into the room.

"How nice of you to join us."

Mickie ignored Jack as her brown eyes scanned the table. There was only one seat left. It was at the top left hand side right next to John. She placed her folders down and pulled out the chair acting as composed as possible. She tried to ignore the heat rushing to her face hoping it would go away.

"Hey." John smiled, his blue eyes crinkling at the corners.

"Hi." she replied and smiled before quickly glancing away. She silently congratulated herself for not letting her eyes linger. She set out her notebook directly in front of her and looked around the room. Her finger repeatedly clicked the pen in her hand. Outwardly she was calm and smiling at everyone while inside her stomach was churning. Just even being close to John unsettled her terribly. Christ, and now she could smell his cologne.

"Jack, do you want to start things off?" asked John.

Jack nodded and stood up from his seat. His small fat hands reached up and adjusted his tie. "We've got the final copies for the Stand Up To Cancer article."

Mickie shifted in her chair. She tried her hardest to pay attention to Jack but being so close to John was playing with her mind. He was like a magnet. She constantly found herself being drawn to him. It was taking everything she had not to turn her head ever so slightly in his direction and all because he showed her a bit of sympathy when she was drunk and pathetic on that train ride.

"Obviously with story such as this we are targeting people who were affected by cancer. Even if they didn't have it."

Mickie saw Mary scribbling furiously across the table. Her nose scrunched in disapproval as she turned her attention back to Jack. Not that she heard a single word he was saying. John had moved in his chair. She could see his thick forearms resting on the desk. His shirt sleeves sat just above his wrists. The sunlight reflected off the glass face of his watch. She couldn't help but wonder what he was thinking. God, she wished she could read his mind. Maybe it would stop her feeling so confused about everything. The guy was blowing hot and cold. Or maybe she was just reading too much into his actions. Maybe she should just stop obsessing over the whole damn thing too much.

"Maybe we are misapprehending our corporate position, Jack? Maybe we should focus on this from a victim's point of view. Focus on our options."

Mickie's brown eyes widened as she looked over at Mary. What the hell was the bitch going on about? options?

"Pardon me." interrupted John.

Mickie allowed herself to look in his direction. After all he was talking. It would be rude not to give him her full attention.

"Can you repeat what you just said Mary?"

Mickie saw the smug glow on Mary's face. She was obviously enjoying being the centre of attention.

"Well what I was saying was we maybe need to review our corporate vision. Focus on things strategically and.."

John had lifted his hand to stop her. His blue eyes looked at her quizzically. "Can you repeat that in language I can understand?"

Mary coughed and couldn't disguise the annoyance she felt. Her eyes looked more pig-like than usual as she squinted in his direction. "Well, we should probably focus on people who were affected but not with cancer but with the bardin of it."

"Thank you. Please, continue." John's big hand lifted up his pen and Mickie watched as he flipped it through his fingers. It was a cute little quirk of his. Not that she had noticed of course. Playing it cool meant you were oblivious to these things and she was as cool as a cucumber. Suddenly John turned his head and flashed a grin her way. Mickie felt the heat rush to her cheeks as she managed a tiny grin back. Okay, now she couldn't stop looking at him. This was absolutely hopeless. There was no chance in hell she could act calm around him. It looked like she'd have to review this whole cucumber thing.

Mickie wasn't sure how she managed it but an hour later somehow she survived the meeting. As John brought it to a close, she gratefully gathered her things together.

"John, can I have a word?"

Mickie looked up to see Mary hovering at the top of the table. She stood up and placing the folders in her arms, she began to leave the room. There were still a couple of hours to go. She had to get this project finished.

"Mickie?"

John's voice sent a jolt down her spine. She turned around slowly. He was smiling at her.

"Can you wait for me in my office? I wanted to discuss the Blue Moon file with you."

Mickie nodded and smiled before quickly leaving the room. It wasn't until she arrived at her desk that it actually dawned on her. She swallowed thickly as she placed down her folders. The Blue Moon file. John's secret code. Her heart hammered in her chest as she tried to remain calm. However she couldn't contain the frisson of excitement at the thought of what it meant. John obviously wanted to discuss what had happened last night. She wasn't entirely sure how she felt about that. This morning she would have been elated but after the ride in the elevator this morning, she had her doubts. Ignorance meant she didn't have to face his rejection. If it even was rejection. Shit. Now she was scared.

Spotting her handbag by her desk, Mickie picked it up. Her hand reached in for her lip gloss. If she was going to go down, she was going to go down in style. She quickly ran the brush through her hair just as John walked out the room with Mary in tow. Her bag gave a thud as she let it drop to the floor.

"Hey. Are you ready?" he asked her.

Mickie nodded and smiled. She was ready as she would ever be. Her heart hammered in her chest as she followed him silently down the corridor. Lindsey wasn't at her desk. Mickie remembered she had a doctor's appointment.

"After you." John opened the door to his office. Mickie stepped inside. The sunlight shone through the open window. She could smell the floral air freshener that lingered in the room.

"So," he began as he sat down on the edge of his desk. It was surprisingly clear of paper. Then again, he hadn't been in his office all day. She should know. She'd checked enough times. As John raised his head, he looked directly at her. His blue eyes wore an unfathomable expression as he spoke. "I had a nice time last night."

His admission caused a lopsided smile to cross Mickie's face. She bit down on her lip suddenly unsure of what to say. John's fingers tapped absently against his thigh and there was silence between them for a few moments. She could hear the traffic in the busy street below.

"I guess I just wanted you to know that."

Mickie couldn't stop her smile from widening. John sounded so shy and so incredibly sweet. "I Had a nice time too." she replied.

She couldn't stop herself from shifting her feet and taking a step closer. She felt an inexplicable pull towards him. John smiled at her. Mickie couldn't stop the words tumbling from her mouth. "I'd like to do it again sometime."

"Me too." John replied before pausing. His tongue flicked out to lick his lips. "But maybe with us working together.."

His voice trailed off. Mickie smiled quickly as she tried to disguise her crushing disappointment. "You're right. It's not a good idea."

She saw John raise his eyebrows fractionally at her response. He was looking at her strangely. What the hell did he expect her to say? She was doing her best to keep her dignity here. Surely he could give her that at least.

"Oh."

Oh. What kind of an answer was oh? And why was he looking at her like that? Like he was almost disappointed? He was the one that brought it up. As he stood up from his desk, Mickie retreated slightly. John pressed his lips together. He stuffed his big hands in his trouser pockets.

"I was going to suggest that we should be discreet but if you think it's a bad idea to see one another at all then I respect that."

Mickie's alarmed brown eyes went wide. Now John had the totally wrong impression. Respect what she said? He should just ignore it. She had to somehow fix this mess. As she gazed up at him, she realised she was breathing hard. Fuck it. She was useless with words. There was only one way to show him.

Unable to wait a second longer, she crossed the short distance between them. Mickie's hands curled around his face as she boldly pulled John towards her. Her breath caught in her throat as their lips pressed together. Her lashes fluttered closed as she felt his mouth open, deepening the kiss. She melted into him, her knees trembling slightly underneath her. God, she wanted this so badly she could hardly breathe. Mickie felt John hands rest gently on her hips. She could feel the heat of his fingers through the cotton material of her blouse while inside her heart was hammering wildly. The kiss was everything she had imagined it to be and she had never experienced anything like it before. John made her feel so alive and wonderful. But all too soon she felt him pull away. Her mouth was wet and her lips felt swollen from his kiss. Her eyes opened as her hands dropped to her sides. He was staring at her. The poor guy actually looked shocked by her actions. She swallowed thickly, her body still throbbing in the aftermath. "I just wanted you to know that I can be the soul of discretion."

John's lips tugged upwards into a slow smile. "I'm glad to hear it." He paused for a second. His blue eyes searched hers.

"So, does this mean you would be up for dinner sometime?"

"Yes."

"We can arrange something for the weekend if you like."

Mickie's heart thumped in her chest. "I'd love to."

Just then there was a knock at the door. Mickie quickly stepped away. She smiled at him almost shyly. "I'll see you later."

John winked at her just as the door opened. As she brushed past Jack, she ignored the curious glance he threw her way. He was the last thing on her mind right now. Smoothing down her blouse, Mickie let out a calming breath. After all, she had to be the soul of discretion. Chuckling to herself she made her way back to her desk. She almost had to stop herself from skipping along the corridor. It was too good to be true. She was actually going on a date with John. Now all she had to do was wait for the weekend. In the meantime, she'd maybe take a look at that magazine article again. After all wasn't it her own mother that taught her it didn't hurt for a girl to be prepared. She was only being the dutiful daughter by listening to her advice and preparing herself for what could be the most important, most amazing night of her life.


	7. Chapter 7

"What are you smiling at?"

Rachel's voice brought her out of her thoughts. Mickie shook her head as they came to the steps just outside the tall grey brick building.

"Nothing."

"Liar!"

Mickie's eyes narrowed in Rachel's direction.

"You were thinking of that hot boyfriend of yours again, weren't you?"

"He's not my boyfriend!"

As Mickie looked away shyly, her friend laughed and affectionately patted her back. "There's no use denying it Micks. It's written all over your face.."

"For goodness sakes, we haven't even gone out yet so he isn't my boyfriend." replied Mickie as she lifted up her wrist and checked her watch. Her brown eyes went wide as she saw the time on the square white face. "It's almost two o'clock Rach. We're going to be late."

As they made their way through the huge glass doors, Rachel asked

"So where did you say you were going tonight?"

Mickie licked her lips. "It's Lindsey's going away party. We're going to the bar down by the bay."

"It's nice in there. My cousin had her 16th birthday party there. The price of the drink is pretty reasonable."

"Well I hope so." sighed Mickie as she brushed off a piece of fluff from her coat. "I don't get paid until next week and I'm in my overdraft already." As she looked distractedly around the lobby, she spotted his brod back immediately. Her brown eyes went wide and grabbing Rachel's arm, she bowed her head.

"Oh my God!" she hissed.

"What?"

"It's John"

"Where?" asked Rachel

"He's standing by the reception desk."

"He's going to know we're late!"

But Mickie wasn't paying her any attention. Her eyes were firmly fixed on the man leaning on the desk less than ten feet in front of her.

Rachel tugged on her friend's arm in an attempt to take her attention away from John. Her jaw was practically hanging open. Another minute longer and there would be a pool of saliva at her feet. Just then she saw John laugh and say something to Amanda. Rachel so a small smile traced her lips.

Eventually taking her attention away from John, she shook her head at Micks. "Stop making it so obvious." she told her.

Mickie's eyes were wide when she eventually looked away. "I wasn't lying when I said he was fucking gorgeous."

They glanced back over towards the reception desk. Thankfully John's back was turned. Mickie's tongue ran slowly over her bottom lip as she continued to admire him.

John finally turned around. Fuck. She quickly spun towards the window pulling Rachel with her. Her eyes squinted in the bright sunlight that poured through the glass. He had been practically looking right at them but with any luck he hadn't spotted them standing here.

"Shit Micks, he's coming over!"

Mickie's face screwed up in despair. Great! That was just her fucking luck. Rachel and I should have never left for lunch. Now John would think she was slacking off again. Her shaking hands smoothed down her black wool sweater. "Act like you haven't noticed." she blurted as she pretended to laugh at something Rachel said, inwardly kicking herself for how pathetic she sounded. She was bleating like a fucking sheep. Talk about humiliating herself. As she tried to casually tuck a lock of hair behind her ear, she could see John approach them out of the corner of her eye. She exhaled slowly through her parted lips bracing herself and racking her brains thinking what she was going to say to him. Lunch had ended five minutes ago. She was more than aware that she should be back sitting at her desk. Christ , she always found herself in these kinds of situations when he was around. Who knew what he thought of her although it couldn't be too bad. He was taking her on a date after all. Butterflies fluttered in her stomach at that thought.

"Hey."

Mickie found herself smiling as she heard his deep voice behind her. She loved his voice. She wondered what it would sound like whispering in her ear or better yet, calling out her name as she brought him to his climax. Shit. Now there was a thought she really shouldn't be having. Not with John standing in such close proximity to her. Still, she wondered if he was loud in bed. No. She had to stop this. It wasn't good for her and she could feel the heat rising to her cheeks. As she turned round to face John, she wondered if he noticed she was blushing. She cleared her throat and tried her best to look composed. She smiled at him.

"Hey."

John's lips upturned into a smile. Her heart skipped a beat. She always thought she remembered how good he looked until she saw him face to face. Her memory never did him justice. Today he looked just amazing. His blue eyes looked light as they sparkled at her. She'd never seen a man look so good in a suit before. It wasn't the fact they were so expensive. God only knows how much they cost. Probably more than she made in her salary each month. The one he was wearing right now looked practically brand new. But John could wear a plastic bag and make it look good. He just had that look about him. Not to mention the fact his body was amazing. She could only imagine what it looked like in all its naked glory. Feeling a sudden rush of warmth, Mickie pushed back the collar of her jacket loosening it a little.

He looked at her and flipped her a wink. She felt her knees tremble slightly underneath her. Fuck, he was so damn sexy. She could smell the faint scent of his cologne.

"Mickie and I were out for lunch."

John smiled. "I wondered." His blue eyes fell on Mickie. "I was looking for you earlier. I wanted to go over the new story we discussed."

"Well here I am." Mickie said, lifting her hands, her voice higher pitched than usual. She saw Rachel looking at her amused. She tried to discreetly throw a less than friendly look her way. She was well aware of how lame she had just sounded. Shit. She always did around John. He reduced her to a quivering wreck at times. Sometimes it was nerves. Most times it was just sheer bloody attraction. No-one had ever affected her this way. She lost her composure every time he flashed that amazing smile at her.

As Mickie watched John's tongue dart quickly across his lips wetting them, she remembered the way they felt when he had kissed her. They had been so soft and warm. She wondered when he would kiss her again. Maybe she would have a chance tonight. God, she hoped so. She wasn't sure she could hold out for much longer.

"Welp, I have to get back to the publishing department, and publish and all. Are you still up for shopping tomorrow afternoon?"

Mickie nodded her head. Rachel had agreed to help her find something to wear for her date with John. She had nothing suitable at home. God knows she'd tried on every outfit she owned over the past couple of nights. Nothing looked right. She wanted to look special. What she didn't want was to look like a fucking mess, thats the reason why she was going with Rachel.

"I'll call you. John, it was nice seeing you again." said Rachel as she lifted her hand in a wave and quickly exited to the stairs. Mickie's eyes were on her as she up down the steps.

"She a nice girl."

A smile traced Mickie's lips. She slowly turned to John nodding her head. "She is. Rachel is a saint." She picked up her tan bag which still sat in the chair.

"So, do you have time right now to go over this story?"

Mickie nodded her head. She has all the time in the world world for John.

"Shall we?" he asked gesturing towards the stairs. She nodded and felt John's hand on the small of her back, guiding her towards them. As she climbed the marble steps, she became conscious of his hand falling away. She could hear his footsteps just behind her. She smiled at a guy from accounts who passed her going down and heard John acknowledge him as she brushed against the brass banister at the top of the staircase, turning the corner towards the office.

"So did you have a nice lunch?" asked John as he caught up with her and they walked along the brightly lit corridor.

"Yes." she smiled. "I'm sorry you couldn't find me earlier."

"Hey, it's not a problem. A girl has to eat right?"

Mickie smiled at him as they walked through the writing department and towards his office. It was quieter than usual and she definitely wasn't complaining. Jack was at a meeting downtown. Mary had the day off to visit the doctors. God, she would have had a cow watching her walk into the office with John. Her eyes would be popping out of her head right about now. Mickie was almost sorry she wasn't here. Instead there was only Sandy and she was too busy chatting on the phone. It was probably her fiance but she would be pretending it was someone else for John's benefit. She had learned only yesterday that Sandy felt intimidated by John. She guessed it was his size. Sandy would be lucky if she was five feet tall.

Mickie smiled at John as he opened the office door for her. Lindsey wasn't at her desk either. Mickie needs to make sure she gave her the best wishes since today was her last day. Lindsey was still none the wiser about her surprise party tonight.

"I've got the final touches on the computer." said John as he closed the door behind him.

Mickie nodded and took off her coat. She tried not to feel disappointed that he had launched straight into talking business. She reminded herself that they were at work. Of course he would talk business. John was a professional. It was one of the things she admired about him. One of the many things.

"Let me take that for you." he said holding out his hand towards her. Mickie smiled and handed him her coat and bag. And of course John was also a gentleman. He knew his manners. Hopefully he left them behind at the bedroom door though. She was done with polite sex. She inwardly shuddered as she thought about Michael.

"Do you want to take my chair?" he asked.

Mickie snapped her head up. All thoughts of Michael vanished from her mind as he smiled at her.

"It will probably be easier if you make any changes." He chuckled lightly giving her goose bumps. "Let's just say the computer and I are having trouble getting properly acquainted with one another."

Mickie laughed as she made her way behind his desk. The room smelled of air freshener and the spicy scent of his cologne. There was yet more paper littering his desk. There was also a desk tidy but it was empty. She saw at least four different pens scattered around. There was also an empty coffee cup sitting by the window ledge.

"So what's the problem?" she asked as she looked at the screen. It was a story for people's health . She didn't know too much about it. It was Jack's project. John was obviously handling it with Jack being out of the office. She knew the deadline was tomorrow which was why John had stepped in.

"I wondered if you could insert the tittel above the article rather than through it? I don't like the look of it."

Mickie could feel John standing behind her. She heard him rummaging around on the desk. She swallowed thickly and began editing the tittle. Her hands were shaking slightly. She was so aware of his presence. Her heart skipped a beat.

"How's that?" she asked once she finally had it done.

"Let me take a look." John looked over her shoulder at the computer screen. His hand brushed lightly against hers as it rested on the laminated desk. He was so close she could smell the mint on his breath. Mickie's heart felt like it was going at a hundred miles an hour. Maybe he meant to touch her or maybe it was accidental. Whatever his intention, he was driving her crazy. "I don't know. I think it's too big."

Mickie cleared her throat as she clicked and highlighted the screen. She could feel his warm breath against her ear. Christ, he had hardly touched her and she was turned on beyond belief. Her body was actually throbbing. She reduced the font as she tried to stay composed. Her eyes remained fixated on the screen.

"Yeah. That definitely looks better. If you print it off, we'll check it over." said John. Mickie froze. His finger traced the back of her neck lightly before he suddenly stepped away. She swallowed thickly. He definitely meant to do that. There was no way that was accidental. She felt the heat rise to her cheeks. He was teasing her and no doubt taking pleasure from it. She felt herself shiver with desire as she pushed back the chair and stood up. She slowly walked to the printer a few feet away. She looked at John out of the corner of her eye. He was flipping through a file not paying her the slightest bit of attention. She scowled as she began to retrieve the paper from the printer. He obviously thought he was clever. Cocky mother. She quickly checked the prints through.

"Its done." she said without turning around.

As she straightened up, she felt John standing behind her. She could smell the heavenly scent of his cologne. He loosely held the top of the papers in her hand as he inspected them. She inhaled sharply as she felt his other hand slowly edge up her thigh. Okay. There was no chance in hell that was an accident. She licked her lips. Her body felt paralysed as he pushed up her short black skirt. His fingers rubbed gently across her flesh burning her skin. She stared straight ahead. She didn't know what the hell to do. Well, that wasn't exactly true. She knew what she wanted to do. Her body just couldn't move to co-operate. She bit down on her lip. His hand moved a little higher. She swallowed hard. She swore her heart was going to burst right out of her chest.

"It's perfect." John said in a hushed whisper against her ear. Mickie felt her legs wobble. Did he mean the papers or did he mean her leg? Suddenly he moved away again. Mickie whimpered at the loss of contact. Her brown eyes were wide as she spun around dazed to see John pick up a file from his desk.

"What the .." Mickie's voice trailed off. She couldn't even form a coherent sentence. She was confused as John's thick fingers straightened his deep purple tie. What on earth was he doing that for? She was mere seconds from ripping the damn thing off him. Not to mention several other items of clothing that honestly had no business being on him in the first place. Her breathing was heavy as he flashed one of those smiles her way. He took the papers from her hand.

"Thanks. I need to take these with me."

Mickie stared at him in disbelief as he placed them in a file. He was on his way towards the door. He was actually going to just leave her. Suddenly he stopped and walked back towards her. Her mouth was opened with every intention of asking him what the hell he was playing at when he kissed her hard. Her heavy lidded eyes stared at him as he pulled away. He winked at her as she stood there breathless. "I'll see you tonight at the party."


	8. Chapter 8

Mickie admired the newly hung Christmas decorations when the arrived to the restruant where the party is held. Coloured lights twinkled from the branches of the trees that aligned the gravelled pathway. A decorative Santa shone from one of the large sash windows. There was definitely a festive atmosphere to the place and it helped create the perfect mood for a party.

"Are we going upstairs?" asked Rachel.

Mickie nodded her head and followed on behind her. She pulled out her pink gloss from her purse in her hand and applied it quickly. She'd been chewing her bottom lip constantly since they'd left the train station. For some reason she felt a little nervous. The preparations for the party had been her sole responsibility. She just wanted everyone to enjoy themselves and for tonight to be a success. As they made it to the top of the metal staircase, Mickie could hear the laughter coming from the open door in front of them.

"Here we are." smiled Rachel as she pulled on her arm. They entered the softly lit room. Bangarand by skrillex was playing and people were dancing. Others were sitting at the tables or standing near the bar tastefully decorated in red and wood. She had to admit it looked pretty impressive. She loved the huge gilt mirrors hanging on the walls. Mickie's hand batted away the bright pink balloon that had floated in her direction as she tried to discreetly scour the room for John. Call her pathetic but he was all she could think about. God knows she couldn't get him out of her head. His teasing this afternoon had only left her wanting even more.

"There you are!"

Mickie turned her head to see Lindsey waddling towards them. Her cheeks glowed as she smiled. She wore a white crochet top that hugged her prominent bump. Her hands reached out towards her and pulled her close.

"Thank you so much." she whispered, her voice wavering with emotion. Tears were in her eyes as her hand gestured around the room. "John told me you had done all this. This really is amazing."

"It was nothing, honestly." replied Mickie feeling slightly embarrassed. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Mary at the bar. Her piggy eyes were looking over in their direction. She should ask the nosy bitch if she wanted a fucking picture.

"God I'm going to miss you guys so much." wailed Lindsey as her arms wrapped around Mickie once again. She saw Rachel smile apologetically and head across to the bar. This was just great. She was left with the hormonal pregnant lady again. It was only this afternoon she had found herself in the same situation. Linsdey had broken down in the bathroom. Rachel had deserted her leaving her to pick up the pieces.

* * *

"promise me you'll stay in touch." she sniffed.

"Of course." soothed Mickie, smoothing down her hair.

"Micks, I'm so scared." Rachel said as she lifted her head. Mickie could see the fear in her big green eyes. She couldn't help but feel a rush of sympathy for the poor girl. The gossip around the office was that Harper William had gone back to his wife. He'd abandoned Lindsey and his unborn child to save his marriage.

"I know but try not to worry too much, okay?" said Mickie as she took a tissue from her purse and carefully removed the smudged mascara from Lindsey's cheeks.

"It's not good for you or the baby."

"I know." she sniffed. "Everything is going to be just fine, right?" Lindsey asked letting out a shaky breath.

"Of course it is." Mickie squeezed her shoulder reassuringly and smiled. "Now, smile and let's go and have a damn good time."

"You're right." she replied. Her lips upturned in a smile. "It is my freaking party after all."

"That's the spirit!" Mickie grinned as she snapped her leather bag shut. She saw Sandy rushing towards them. Her wild curls bobbed around the top of her head. She grabbed Lindsey by the arm and smiled at Mickie.

"You don't mind if I grab her, do you? Rose wants to show her the scarf she made."

"Not at all." She smiled at Lindsey. "I'll catch up with you later."

Lindsey waved as she disappeared with Sandy. Mickie jumped as she heard her friend's voice behind her.

"Christ, that girl is reeking of perfume." said Rachel. "It stinks too. It's like something you would use to clean out your bathroom with."

Mickie laughed as she pushed a loose curl from her face. Her hand smoothed down her dress as she casually looked around the small dance floor.

"He's behind you." smirked Rachel knowingly as she handed her a drink. "That's a double by the way. I thought you might need it."

Mickie gratefully took the glass from her hand and tried to discreetly turn around as she sipped at her cranberry and vodka.

"He's at the end of the bar standing with Jack and big mouth Mary. Drink that and we can go and save him."

She wasn't going over there. Not with Jack there. That bastard always found a way of cutting her down to size.

"Come on Mickie. Drink up." Claire pleaded. "Mr McSexy is waiting for you." she teased in a sing song voice.

"I wish you would stop calling him that"

"Aw, you love it. And you know you love him."

"Shut up." she glared feeling the heat rush to her cheeks. She swore Rachel lived to taunt her. The girl was relentless. Just then the music changed and someone screamed loudly. She watched as a group of girls from accounts went rushing out on the dance floor.

"Down that drink quickly will you? I want to get another one."

Taking a deep breath, Mickie took a couple of large gulps. She coughed and spluttered as Rachel dragged her by the arm to the bar. Before she knew it she was standing just a few feet away. Her back was turned to him but her body still tingled knowing John was close by. She flicked her hair over her shoulder and tried to act composed as she pretended to check out the drinks list behind the counter. Her eyes had wept with her coughing and she wiped at them with her hand. Inside her heart was racing wondering if he would come over and talk to her. God, she wished he would. She was desperate to see him. She wondered what he was wearing tonight. Absolutely nothing if she had her way.

"Aren't you going to talk to him?" asked Rachel as she leant her arms on the cluttered bar. Her head followed the bar tender as she tried to get his attention.

"I don't want to make it too obvious do I?" said Mickie as she lightly scratched her head. "It's a secret, remember?"

"For God sakes, Micks! It's an office party. It would be weird if you didn't talk to him. Mary is."

"She fucking would." Mickie muttered under her breath. She leant back and tried to shift her body slightly in his direction. Her curiosity was getting the better of her. She wanted to see him.

"Shit. I need to go to the bathroom." said Rachel as she pushed back her hair. "Will you get the drinks? I'll be back in a minute."

Nodding her head, Mickie watched her take off across the dance floor. Smiling, she lifted her hand to get the bar tender's attention. Of course he was ignoring her and being an ignorant bastard. Maybe she should flash him like Lucy was just to get his damn attention.

"So you finally made it then."

Mickie's breath caught in her throat. John was behind her. She swallowed thickly as she turned round to face him. Her brown eyes met the smooth skin of his neck and resisted the urge to touch it.

"I take it you were running a bit late?"

Mickie lifted her head and saw his blue eyes twinkling at her. His lips were twitching with his smile. Sweet Jesus, he was sexy. She swore John got more good-looking every time she saw him. Christ, his cologne! She was going to find out the name of it so she could soak her pillowcase with it.

"Are you surprised?" she smiled, pleased to find that although she was trembling inside, her voice was calm and steady.

"No. Not really." John grinned as he leant his hip against the bar. He wore a black open neck shirt and trousers. Mickie couldn't take her eyes off him. He was definitely born to wear that color.

"It seems to be a habit of yours." he teased.

"It's not my fault though." she replied, biting down on her lip as she smiled.

"I'm cursed you see."

"Cursed?"

Mickie nodded, tucking a stray curl behind her ear. "I'm a walking disaster area. Things just happen to me. Take tonight for example."

"Why what happened tonight?" asked John. His voice was filled with his laughter. It sounded slightly different somehow. She couldn't quite put her finger on it. It was deeper maybe. Whatever it was, it was making her melt. She was in real danger of becoming a puddle on the floor.

"Bubble bath." she said simply.

"Bubble bath?" he chuckled, his nose scrunched in amusement.

Mickie nodded. "It spilled on the floor, which was already damp with water from the tub. The end result being that the bathroom and I was covered in foam."

"Now there is something I would have loved to have seen." John winked at her. The color rushed immediately to her cheeks. She suddenly felt hot.

"Yes, well, it was pretty messy." she said.

"I'll bet it was." His blue eyes stared at her intently as his finger brushed against her hand resting on the bar.

Mickie cleared her throat. If John was trying to kill her, he was definitely succeeding. Jesus Christ, it was hot in here. Somebody needed to turn the damn heat down.

"When you're late tomorrow night at least I'll have an idea of what's happened to you."

A shy smile crossed her face as she thought about their date. "I promise not to be. Late I mean."

"To be on the safe side, I'm planning on picking you up at your door." he replied smiling. John turned towards the bar. He somehow managed to get the bar tender's attention. Maybe she should ask him to punch out his lights for ignoring her earlier on.

"What can I get you, Micks?"

You, she thought. "A diet coke with vodka in a tall glass with ice, please." she said out loud. "Oh and can I have a straw with that?"

John nodded and smiled. "A lady who knows what she wants. I like it."

Mickie's heart flipped in her chest as she watched him order and pay for their drinks. Some slow tune played clearing the small dance floor. She frowned as she spotted Rachel talking with Michael. What the hell did he want? She never even thought about him being here. Then again, why would she waste a single moment on him when she had a guy like John standing right next to her? Forgetting all about Michael, she thanked John for her drink. Her brown eyes admired him as she sipped the alchol through her straw.

"You've done an amazing job tonight, Mickie."

Mickie blushed at the compliment, biting down on her lip as she smiled back at him shyly. God, she loved how he said her name. It was like nobody else said it that way. "Thank you."

"You look really beautiful by the way." he said softly.

Mickie's cheeks flushed even hotter as John's eyes travelled over her slowly and deliberately. Her body was tingling all over. She didn't even know how long they stood there and chatted. She seemed to lose track of time when she was with him. She wasn't even sure how many drinks she had either. All she knew was that her head was pleasantly buzzing and she was really enjoying herself.

"Can I get you another?"

Mickie nodded her head and placed her empty glass on the counter. "I'll be hungover tomorrow."

"Then I'll just have to be gentle with you." said John winking at her before turning to the bar. Mickie felt giddy. She wondered how many people had noticed them together. They were hardly being discreet after all. She had been chatting to John for ages. He was so easy to get along with and when she talked he gave her his full attention. He seemed genuinely interested in what she had to say. That wasn't something she was used to. Not with the men that she usually found herself associated with.

"Are you having a good time?"

Mickie groaned at the voice just behind her. Forcing herself to smile, she lifted her head and saw Mary standing there. Her long red dress fit her snugly. Her harsh makeup made her eyes even smaller.

"Yes I am." Mickie replied.

"I thought that." Mary's face wore a smug expression as she smiled. Mickie gripped her fist tightly. She really was a bitch. She'd probably even timed how long she had been with John.

"Hey Mary." John said as he placed their drinks on the counter. Mickie smiled to thank him. Butterflies fluttered in her stomach as he smiled back at her.

"Hi John."

Mickie rolled her eyes. She was using that pathetic voice. The one she used with Jack when she was kissing up to him.

"Mickie was just telling me she was having a good time."

John nodded as he placed his beer bottle to his lips.

"She always does though, don't you Mickie?"

She narrowed her eyes wondering where the Mouth was going with this.

"You really enjoyed the New Years party last year. In fact, didn't you wear the exact same dress?"

Resisting the urge to smack her right in the mouth, Mickie pressed her lips together tightly. "Yes I did." She grabbed her purse that was sitting beside her on the counter and smiled at John. "If you'll excuse me for a second, I just need to freshen up."

Cursing Mary under her breath, she marched to the bathrooms. Her mind was working overtime as she thought up various forms of torture. She swore she had deliberately set out to embarrass her. She really had a fucking nerve. Mickie was so deep in thought that she didn't even notice the person standing in the stairwell. She jumped in shock as he came out of the shadows and stood directly in front of her.

"Holy Shit Michael! You scared me to death."

"Sorry." he said as he shuffled his feet. His brown eyes looked heavy. He looked pale and tired. She crossed her arms protectively under her chest.

"What the hell are you doing anyway? Are you scoping out your next unsuspecting victim?"

"I thought at least we could be civil with one another."

"Civil? After what you did?" snapped Mickie.

"Look I know I screwed up, okay? I should have told you about Marissa."

"No shit."

"But I didn't because I was afraid of losing you if you knew about her." admitted Michael as he reached out to touch her. Mickie stepped away. She didn't want him to touch her. She couldn't bear to have him near her.

"I don't want to hear this." Her voice slightly trembled.

"I wasn't lying last week when I told you I missed you."

"Save it. I'm not interested anymore." she said abruptly. She tried to push her way past him. Michael grabbed her arm and brought her back towards him. As he looked deep into her eyes, she found herself getting angrier.

"I'll leave Marissa if that's what you want."

Mickie rolled her eyes.

"I just wanted you to know how I felt. How I still feel about you."

Mickie shook her head wondering why she was even listening to this. Michael was history. What they had, well it was over. How could she ever trust him after all the lies he had told her. Shaking her head slightly, Mickie's angry eyes glared at him.

"Cut the crap. It doesn't work on me anymore." she said as she tried to shake loose from his grasp.

Ben held her tightly. His free hand reached up tangling his fingers in her hair. "Please Mickie. I love you." He brought her face slowly towards his. As his lips brushed softly against hers, she tried to push him off. She's struggling. All of a sudden Michael's lips are yanked off of her, and when Mickie opened her eyes, she saw John pinning up Michael agianst the wall.

"She told you no. Do you know what that means? or do i have to beat it into you?"

John saved her, now he's defeanding her. That's so.. so.. hot, Mickie thought.

"If you ever go near her again, ill fire your ass. After i fuck it up. Got it?

Mickie saw the fear in Michael's eyes. It's funny because karma got to him. Got him good too.

When John finally let him go and michael ran away, he looked at Mickie with concerned eyes. They stood there for about 35 seconds until Mickie finally said something.

"Thank you, thank you so much"

She saw him smile a little bit and got closer "Are you okay?" He asked wrapping his arms around her

Tears started to form in her eyes as she nodded. John just held her tighter.

"Come on, lets go get fucked up"


	9. Chapter 9

"Time to go home people." the big voice boomed. It was the bar tender. Mickie glared in his direction and shook her head, her curls shifting across her bare shoulders.

"Excuse me but we are having an important conversation here."

"And I'm trying to get home lady so take it somewhere else." he snapped as he began to collect the glasses at their table.

"There's no need to be so rude." The bar tender threw her a glare before carrying the glasses away. She felt John tug on her arm lightly as he stood up from the seat.

"Come on, Micks. Let's go."

Her eyes were wide as she turned to look up at him. "But did you hear the way he spoke to me?"

"Yes I did." said John.

He held out his hand towards her. Mickie happily took hold of it. She wasn't entirely sure she could stand up on her own plus she loved the feel of his skin. It was so soft and warm.

"Want me to punch his lights out like i did to michael, well almost?" he joked as he pulled her to her feet.

Mickie nodded her head and grinned. She grabbed her bag from the seat and quickly smoothed down her dress. "You could definitely take him." she said as she tottered unsteadily behind him.

"Yeah. With my eyes closed." John called out loudly as he glared in the bar tender's direction. Mickie smiled as she watched the stocky man disappear behind the bar. John still held her hand as they walked to the door. For some reason it made her grin like an idiot. Or maybe it was the alcohol. Shit. She didn't know anymore and really she didn't care. John was here and that was all that mattered to her.

They approached the metal winding staircase. Mickie's eyes searched around for Rachel. She was definitely gone. She could only see a couple of people left.

"Now watch yourself going down here. I don't want you breaking a leg or anything." said John

Mickie shook her head and jutted her jaw out defiantly. "I'm perfectly fine, you know."

She took a couple of steps and turned to smile at John smugly. He shook his head in amusement just as her heel clipped the edge of a step and she lost her footing. Her body went flying backwards. "Shit." she cursed. Fortunately John's tight grip on her hand somehow kept her on her feet. Her breathing was heavy as she balanced on the step precariously.

"You were saying?" he teased. John pulled her towards him. She felt his arm slide around her waist. She leant against him gratefully. Her heart thumped wildly in her chest as her eyes stared at the tiled floor below them.

"It's a long way down there, huh?" she said.

She felt John's body shake with his laughter. "It would have definitely been messy. Now hold on to me and let's try and get you down here in one piece."

Mickie wrapped her arm around his waist. Her other hand gripped hold of her bag tightly as they slowly began to descend the steps.

"Are you okay?" asked John.

Mickie nodded her head. Her brown eyes were wide. Her heels clicked loudly against the steel grating on the steps. If she wasn't haunted by the image of plunging to her death, she would be enjoying this. She could feel John's hand resting on her hip. It felt so nice and warm. But shit she was scared. Her hand gripped hold of John a little more tightly. Her whole body felt tense. "We should have taken the elevator." she said.

"There isn't one."

"Well there should be."

John laughed. "We're nearly there."

Mickie let out a calming breath as she descended the bottom step. Her legs felt shaky as she walked out the front entrance.

"Now there are steps here too so keep hold of me."

Mickie nodded her head. Like that was a hardship. Now she had survived the stairway from hell, she could fully appreciate how good it felt to have John's arm wrapped around her. God, he felt so firm. Closing her eyes, she tilted her face up towards him.

The fresh air was making her head spin again. And people said getting out in it was good for you. What a bunch of crap. As they turned into the street, she felt John's arm fall from her waist. She tried not to feel disappointed as she let him go and tottered towards the bright lights of the busy city.

"Can I ask where you are going?"

Mickie flicked her curls across her shoulder. She noticed the stars were out tonight. They looked really pretty. "I'm going home." she said.

She felt John's hand take hold of hers. He tugged and pulled her towards him. Her brown eyes stared at him widely.

"Home is that way." he said chuckling as his big arm gestured in the opposite direction.

"I knew that." she snorted indignantly. She pushed a stray curl from her face. "I was just getting some pizza first."

"You're hungry?" asked John.

Mickie nodded and pulled on his hand. "Papa Tony's has the best italian style pizza ever. Come on or he'll be closed."

She tugged on his hand. As they walked along the street, she felt his fingers slide through hers and a delighted smile crossed her face. Half an hour later she had her pizza. They were sitting on a bench in the small gardens next to the library. The cardboard box was on her lap and John's jacket was draped around her shoulders. Despite not feeling the cold, he'd insisted she put it on. He really was the sweetest man. In fact John was a perfect gentleman.

"You were my sexy stranger you know." she said before taking a bite of pizza. She chewed savouring the taste. It really was to die for.

"I was, was I?" John asked.

Mickie nodded as she swallowed her food. John was smiling at her. She had suddenly lost her appetite and she licked her greasy lips.

"But then you became my boss and now look. Everything is fucked up."

She threw the box down on the bench beside her. She stretched her legs out in front of her.

"I can't even bribe you with lingerie to get out of this one either."

"Wait a second. You would bribe me with lingerie?" chuckled John.

Mickie nodded. Her head was spinning again. Her eyelids blinked heavily as she struggled to focus. "Mmhmm. I was going to when I thought you would fire me."

"Really? Shit! I wish I'd known."

Mickie's glazed brown eyes went wide as she turned to him. "You wouldn't have fired me though, would you?"

"Well that depends on the lingerie." he teased. "What kind was it?"

"It was red lace." she rambled as she pushed her hand through her messy curls. She shifted in her seat to face John. He looked so breathtakingly handsome sitting there in the moonlight.

"Then I definitely wouldn't have fired you." he said softly.

"Really?"

John shook his head and smiled.

"Are you going to fire me on Monday though?"

"If I said yes, would you promise to wear the lingerie this time?"

Mickie smacked his arm. "John, I'm being serious here."

"I'm sorry." he smirked.

"I love my job you know."

"I know you do."

"And I would really hate to lose it." She paused and swallowed thickly. Her stomach felt slightly queasy. Shit. The last thing she wanted was to puke in front of John.

"You're not going to lose your job, Mickie."

She smiled at him gratefully. Her nausea was forgotten as she looked into his eyes. "Not even after what happened with Michael tonight? Because honestly, i tried pushing him away but he had a grip on me. I told him I wanted nothing to do with him but he just wouldn't listen. He tried to tell me he would leave Marissa. Of course that would never happen. He's just looking for sex. And even that's not any good. He's scum, John and I wouldn't go back to him if he was the last man on earth. Do you believe me? Please tell me you believe me!" she pleaded. Her brown eyes were wide as they frantically searched his face. Her shoulders rose and fell with her rapid breathing.

John placed his hand on her arm and smiled. "Yes I believe you, thats why i almost killed him. Now slow down and take a breath."

"Thank you for that. I really do appreicate it"

"Anything for you"

John's blue eyes were gentle as his fingers reached up and pushed her curled locks from her face.

"I'm happy you were there" She explained

He shrugged and smiled. "I guess i was being a typical guy, I didn't like anyone invading my turf."

She grinned drunkenly. "So I'm your turf, huh?"

John chuckled. "Well something like that."

"I've never been anyone's turf before. I'm not sure what it entails."

"Well, wearing that lingerie is a start." he grinned, raising his eyebrows suggestively.

Mickie's tongue poked between her teeth as she smiled and leaned towards him. Her hand rested on his thigh and she could feel her whole body tingling. "I'll wear it for you tomorrow night if you like."

She saw John's eyes widen with surprise. She bit down on her lip and sat back quickly. Shit. She was being way too forward now. Mickie removed her hand from his leg and she consciously tugged down the hem of her dress. "Not that I'm easy." she added hastily. "I don't want you to get the wrong impression or anything."

John's body shook with his laughter. His deep chuckle echoed around the silent garden. She frowned at him confused. What the hell had he found so funny now?

"What?" she scowled. She blinked rapidly. Her stomach had thankfully stopped churning but her head still felt woozy. Great! She knew was going to feel like total shit tomorrow. Fucking jello shots! She was never touching them again.

"You know I've never met anyone quite like you, Mickie."

Mickie snorted loudly as she leant back against the bench. "Thank God for small mercies, huh? I cause nothing but trouble you know. Or trouble follows me. I told you I was cursed."

"Cursed or not, I'm really glad I met you."

Mickie's lips parted with surprise at his admission. Her heart flipped in her chest. "You are?"

John nodded and smiled. He took hold of her hand. Mickie stared into his eyes and found herself getting lost in them. "Maybe it's because from the moment you opened your mouth on that train I was attached by you."

"attached to me?" she asked in disbelief.

"Attached to you." he repeated simply.

Mickie couldn't stop the wide grin that slowly crossed her face. She probably looked like a drunken lunatic but right now she didn't care. John was attached her. Attached! To her! That was practically telling her he liked her. Hell, maybe he even liked her a lot. Oh my God! This was all too good to be true. Screw her parents' advice about never talking to a stranger. If she hadn't opened her mouth on that train, she knew she wouldn't be sitting here now. It was obvious she was meant to find out that Michael was a cheating bastard. She was meant to get drunk and spill her guts. She was meant to attract John before he became her boss which meant they were obviously destined to find one another. As that thought blissfully rolled round in her head, Mickie felt John's lips brush against hers. Melting against him she returned his sweet kiss. Fate really and truly was a wonderful thing.


	10. Chapter 10

"My hair straighteners just blew up on me." whined Mickie

Rachel threw her a sympathetic look. Her friend understood and knew she couldn't survive without them. Mickie suddenly felt the overwhelming urge to cry. She'd been on such a high about her date all afternoon and now the whole thing was ruined before it had even started.

"I'll have to call John and cancel." she said sadly as she wandered slowly back up the staircase, her bare feet sinking into the plush carpet.

Rachel followed on behind her. "You can't cancel, Mickie. The poor guy will be on his way over here already."

"Well I can't go out looking like this!" she replied incredulously as she walked into her untidy bedroom and flopped back onto the bed. The new black basque top she had purchased hung on the back of the door along with the matching chiffon pants. The diamonte heels she'd spent over a hundred dollars on finished off the outfit perfectly. She had even bought new lingerie and perfume. She had planned to knock John dead tonight. Shame she wouldn't get the chance now. Mickie grabbed her pillow and groaning loudly, she buried her face into it.

"Don't do that! You'll ruin your makeup!" Rache; cried as she yanked Mickie up by the shoulder.

"What does it matter?" she pouted. "I'm not going anywhere."

"Don't be ridiculous. Just put your hair up. I know you don't like wearing it that way but really you've got no choice." Rachel's eyes began to scour the messy bedroom. "Where the hell are those curling things we used last night?"

"I think they're in the bathroom."

"Well go and get them." said Rachel as she pulled off her coat. She frowned at Mickie who still sat on the bed. "Come on! You don't have all night you know."

Mickie groaned in protest but she felt her spirits begin to lift as she shuffled through the small bathroom. Okay, she was probably being a drama queen over the whole hair thing but tonight was really important to her. In fact it meant everything to her especially after last night. Mickie smiled as she grabbed the curling iron from the small stainless steel trolley in the corner. She slowly wandered back to the bedroom and her smile widened. John was attached to her. She still couldn't believe he had said that to her. It was like something out of a romance novel especially when the moon had been shining and the stars twinkling brightly above them. Okay they had both been freezing to death and she was drunk off her ass but hey, romance wasn't perfect. The kiss had been though. It had been the sweetest and the most wonderful kiss. God, she was practically melting just thinking about it.

"Micks, for God sakes. What are you doing in there?"

Rachel's shout brought her out of her funk. Mickie rushed through to the bedroom. Ten minutes later she was smiling at her reflection. She no longer looked stupid. In fact, she didn't look half bad. She turned and grinned at Rachel. "You're a life saver, Rach." She gave her a twirl.

Rachel grinned back. "You look amazing, Micks."

"Are you sure?" Mickie asked as her stomach began doing cartwheels. Her nerves were suddenly kicking in. She glanced at her stainless steel watch. It was eight o'clock on the dot. Shit. John would be here any second. Now she really was getting nervous. God, she prayed tonight went well. She was going to be on her best behaviour. She wasn't going to embarrass herself. God knows, that's all she seemed to do in front of John lately. Just then the doorbell rang making her jump. Mickie almost couldn't breathe. Her wide brown eyes stared at her friend. "Shit, Rachel. He's here. What am I going to do?"

"Well answering the door would help." laughed Rachel.

Mickie turned to look at her reflection one last time. She flicked her tongue across her teeth and checked them to make sure there were no remnants of her lipstick left on them. "My stomach is eating itself right now." She grabbed her little black bag from the dresser.

"Micks, you'll be fine." Rachel placed a calming hand on her shoulder. "Now go and have a really good time with . I'll lock up for you."

Mickie scowled as she picked up the black coat draped across her chair. "You know I really wish you would stop calling him that."

The doorbell rang again. Rachel pushed her friend out the bedroom. "Get out of here, will you?"

Mickie lifted her hand in a wave and pulling on her coat, she cautiously made her way down the stairs in her heels. Even the alcohol last night hadn't erased the stairway of hell from her mind. She'd almost plunged to her death. She wasn't taking any risks tonight.

"Call me if you can." called Rachel after her.

"I will." she replied as she stood at the bottom of the stairs and letting out a calming breath, Mickie opened the door. John was standing there. Her heart thumped in her chest. He looked absolutely gorgeous in an open necked white dress shirt and Northface jacket. She could smell his cologne. It was different to the one he usually wore but it was just as incredible. He smiled at her and she felt her nerves float away like bubbles in the air.

"Hi." he said. John's beautiful blue eyes twinkled at her. "You look amazin by the way."

"Thank you." Mickie blushed as she closed the door behind her.

"And you're on time too. I feel extremely privileged."

"You should be." she laughed. "I barely made it by the skin of my teeth."

"Do I even want to ask?" he teased.

"It's probably better if you didn't." she grinned.

"In that case, your chariot awaits Madame." John gestured towards the black R8 Audi sitting a few feet from them. The streetlights illuminated the immaculate bodywork. Mickie's mouth parted in surprise.

"You have a car?" she asked. Her heels clicked against the sidewalk as she walked towards the vehicle.

John snorted. "It's not just a car. I'll have you know this is the ultimate driving experience."

"But you take the train."

"It's much easier than parking in the city." He pressed the key in his hand. The vehicle unlocked. He opened the passenger door and smiled at Mickie.

"Thank you." she said. She sat in the leather bucket seat. John closed the door behind her and smiling, she rested her bag on her lap. He really was a gentleman. No man had opened and closed the car door for her before. And what a car this was. Audi's are so sexy. Mickie admired the immaculate cashmere interior. She gasped as John got in beside her. "You've even got a back up camera in here."

"I know. It's cool, huh?" he grinned as he started up the engine.

The dash lit up in a warm orange glow. Mickie shook her head amused. John was like a proud little boy right now. He obviously loved his car or whatever it was he had called it. She had to admit she couldn't blame him. It really was beautiful and no doubt ridiculously expensive. John was definitely not short of a dollar or two not that she gave a damn. He could be a pauper for all she cared.

As they pulled down the street, Mickie pulled back the collar of her coat. Damn, it was warm in here. Being in such close proximity to John was playing with her senses. She was burning up. She would open a window but there were that many damn buttons she wouldn't know which one to press. Suddenly she felt a strange sensation and she shifted uncomfortably on the seat. "John, why is my ass burning up?"

He chuckled as he turned the corner. "The seats are heated. You want me to turn it off?"

Mickie nodded her head and smiled at him gratefully.

"Our dinner reservation is at eight thirty by the way. It's a nice place. I hope you like it."

"I'm sure I will." she smiled and turned and looked out the tinted glass window. The bright lights of the city passed her by and she felt her stomach churn in nervous anticipation. This was going to be a perfect date. She just knew it.

Twenty minutes later they were standing in the foyer waiting to be seated. John held her hand as she gazed towards the restaurant. It seemed busy with people seated at practically every table. Mickie admired the room which was surrounded by pillars but it was the large glass dome ceiling which caught her eye. She could see the stars in the black sky above. God, it was so romantic. The whole place had an intimate feel to it. She'd never been here before. She hadn't even known it had existed even although it was smack bang in the centre of the city. She was about to ask John if he had been here before when the woman with blonde hair and a red jacket caught her eye. Mickie's brown eyes went wide as she tugged on John's hand to get his attention.

"I think we might have a problem." she whispered.

John looked at her curiously. "Why? Don't you like it here?" he asked.

Mickie shook her head. "That's not the problem." She looked towards the restaurant area. "She is."

"Who?"

"See the lady in the red jacket three tables down on the left? She's blowing her nose with the napkin."

"You know that's fucking rude."

Mickie couldn't help but chuckle. "John, it's not funny. That's Barbra, Jack's wife."

"Hmmm, okay. But I don't see Jack with her."

"The chair beside her is empty. He's probably in the bathroom or something. What if he comes out and sees us together?" Mickie turned to John. He was staring ahead thoughtfully. His blue eyes were narrowed in Barbara's direction.

"I see what you mean. That could be a bit of a problem."

"Do you think we should make a run for it before he comes back?"

John turned to her and grinned. His blue eyes sparkled at her mischievously as he shook his head. "I like to live dangerously not to mention the fact I'm absolutely starving. I say we stay and take our chances. Besides they're preparing our table right at the back. Jack will never see us."

"Are you sure?" Mickie asked.

"Absolutely." he smiled.

Suddenly he pulled her behind the pillar hiding her from view. The large yucca plant tickled her face. Mickie's brown eyes were wide as she stared at him curiously.

"Jack is walking back to his table." said John as he pulled her closer towards him.

Mickie's heart was thumping in her chest. She didn't know if it was being so close to John or the whole stress of the situation. Probably both but damn, he smelt wonderful.

"Did he see you?" she asked.

John shook his head as he peered through the leaves of the plant. "He's putting on his coat. They must be leaving."

"Maybe we should run outside."

"Too late. They're coming this way."

Mickie licked her dry lips. "What are we going to..?"

She didn't get a chance to finish her question as John pulled her close and placed his mouth over hers. She moaned softly as he took her breath away. Butterflies danced in her chest as his lips parted, deepening the kiss. She didn't know how long they'd been standing there like that. She placed her hand over her chest as he broke the kiss. Her mouth was wet and the blood was beating in her ears. Her entire body was throbbing.

"They're gone now. I don't think they saw us." smiled John as he stepped back. Mickie's heart was still pounding madly.

"Sir, your table is ready now." said the waiter as he appeared out of nowhere. "Please come this way."

John took her hand as Mickie followed on behind him. She saw a middle aged couple at a table glance across at them. She was sure she was smiling widely and probably looked like a flustered idiot. She didn't care. She was here with else mattered. She thanked the waiter as he pulled out her chair. She sat down and placed her bag at her feet.

"So, what would you like to drink?" asked John.

Mickie grimaced and shook her head. "I think I'll stick to water if you don't mind."

John chuckled as he picked up the leather bound menu and opened it. "Are you feeling a little delicate after last night?"

"Maybe." blushed Mickie. She began to flick through her menu.

"You won't be the only one that is."

"I'm probably the only one that made a fool of myself though." she frowned and sighed softly.

"You didn't make a fool of yourself, Mickie." he said in a gentle tone. She smiled at him gratefully. She had but it was sweet of him to try and reassure her. "But if it makes you feel better, a certain someone threw up in the ladies bathrooms."

She placed down her menu on the table intrigued. "Who was it?"

John shook his head. "I really shouldn't gossip about my staff." He glanced back down at his menu. "Mary."

"Oh my God!" She snorted with laughter. Mickie quickly busied herself in her menu. This was a nice place. She didn't want people looking over at them plus she had promised herself not to embarrass John tonight. She didn't want this to be their first and only date.

"It would probably be humiliating for her if word was to get out about it."

Mickie looked up to see John smirking at her. "Maybe I should send out a company e-mail."

John laughed as the waiter came to take their order. He also requested a bottle of wine. It was Chardonnay. Her favourite and it certainly wasn't cheap. He winked at her as the waiter left.

"In case you change your mind about having that drink."

Mickie smiled at him. Maybe she would have one. After all it would be rude not to. Besides, hair of the dog and all that!

"So, tell me about yourself, Mickie."

She smiled at him shyly as she fluffed up her napkin and placed it on her knee. "What do you want to know?" she asked.

"Everything." he said simply. His thick forearms rested in front of him.

Mickie began to talk and warm. Thanks to the heated front seat or was it the fact she'd finished that bottle of wine? She wasn't entirely sure but she knew she'd had a wonderful time. Despite the disaster with the hair straighteners and seeing Jack at the restaurant, everything else had been totally perfect. It had been the best first date of her life.

"Thank you for tonight." she said shifting in her seat as the car stopped at the traffic lights. The wipers cleared the windscreen of the heavy rain that had just begun to fall. Soft music played on the radio.

"You're welcome." he smiled.

His hand reached across and rested on her thigh. He squeezed it gently. His fingers burned her skin through the light material of her trousers. The lights changed to green but his hand remained on her leg. His thumb was making a small circular motion and was quite literally driving her crazy. Was it so wrong that he could affect her this badly? Surely she should have some self control for goodness sakes. As his hand crept up her leg, Mickie swallowed thickly. But when it came to John, she knew she was absolutely hopeless. Absolutely hopeless and falling for him hard and so fast it actually scared her. She had never experienced feelings like this before in her life. Feelings that had completely overwhelmed her.

"This is you." Paul said as he pulled into the kerb. Mickie realised she was home as he switched off the engine. He got out of the car and went around to Mickie's side. They got to the door and John said "I really had a good time tonight, Mickie."

"So did I." she smiled. Her heart beat in her chest and she couldn't help think that if John had a good time maybe he would ask her out again. God, she hoped so. She really did. Would it be too forward if she asked him in for coffee? It probably would especially when she'd practically thrown herself at him last night when she'd offered to wear that lingerie for him.

"Well, maybe we could have a good time again really soon."

Mickie nodded and smiled widely. John sounded quite shy. He really was so sweet. "I'd like that." she replied.

His face moved towards her and his hand cupped her cheek. His eyes closed as his mouth pressed firmly against hers. Mickie sighed softly as she melted into his kiss. His hand gently squeezed her leg while his thumb traced her cheek. Her heart pounded wildly as his mouth opened allowed her fingers to reach across his neck. Suddenly she couldn't have him close enough. He began to kiss her deeply. Her body tingled as his hand moved to her neck. Mickie moaned into his mouth as his tongue brushed against hers. Her body was throbbing all over wanting more of him. As his lips found her neck, Mickie found she struggled to breathe. Her hand fell from his neck and her eyes fluttered open as they gazed at eachother.

"Do you want to come inside?" she whispered

"Actually Micks, I probably should go."

"You don't have to." she said thickly. "You don't have to stay long."

As soon as the words slipped from her mouth, Mickie realised she was mad. What was she suggesting? That he stayed long enough for her to rip his clothes off and sleep with him? It made her sound desperate and quite frankly she was. She had never wanted someone so badly and so desperately. Her brown eyes searched his handsome face eagerly.

" I don't want to leave but I think it's for the best. I would like to see you agian and i can't help my actions if i come in" said John as he removed his hand from her hair and slid his fingers through hers. Mickie gripped it tightly.

"So, I guess I'll just see you Monday." she said. His blue eyes were staring at her intently. She inhaled his cologne. It was intoxicating just like John.

"I guess you will." He smiled at her softly and his hand reached up pushing a loose curl behind her ear. His hand lingered on her cheek. "I meant what I said though. I'd really like to see you again, Micks."

"Me too." she smiled.

"Maybe next weekend?"

"I'd like that." she nodded.

"We could see a movie or something and take it from there." Mickie felt his fingers caress her jaw before John leaned forward and gave her a gentle kiss. He pulled back and smiled.

"Goodnight Micks."

"Goodnight John." she replied as she opened her front door. She gave him a final wave goodbye before she shut the door. Mickie smiled as she unbuttoned her coat and John's words rang in her ears. Surely that had to mean something. God knows she wanted it to. More so now than ever after everything that had happened tonight. Until then she'd be the soul of discretion at work. She couldn't risk anyone finding out the truth about her and John. Her and John. God, that sounded like absolute heaven! Now all she had to do was find a way of surviving until next weekend and try her best to resist mauling John in the process. It would be hard but she'd find a way to do it.


	11. Chapter 11

The back of her thighs hit against the wooden desk. Mickie's entire body throbbed as John pushed up her short black skirt. His big hand was rubbing her leg. She was struggling to form a single coherent thought as his hot mouth descended on her neck, sucking gently on her skin. God knows she wanted John so badly. She'd never felt need like this for a man before. Her whole body was crying out for him, desperate for his touch. As his fingers moved further up her leg, Mickie needed to feel him. Her fingers tugged on his shirt, yanking it from his dark grey trousers. Her hand trailed up and down his back. His skin felt soft and hot against her palm. John smelled so incredible too. Her nails lightly scratched his skin as she moved her hand round to his chest. It was smooth and so firm. She could feel it rise and fall with his breathing. Mickie began to fumble with the small buttons at the front. Her lips parted in a silent moan as John's tongue began circling her nipple through her lace bra. That was when she realised her shirt was undone. Now when the hell had that happened? She hadn't even noticed he had taken it off and God, his other hand was squeezing the very top of her thigh. Mickie swallowed hard. Her throat felt thick and dry as John's lips found hers once again. As their tongues brushed together, his hand squeezed her bare breast and she moaned into mouth. Okay, her bra was undone now. This guy was some sort of magician making her clothes literally fall off at his touch. Not that she was complaining. Every part of her wanted this so much. She had dreamt of this moment forever and she never wanted him to stop. Not ever and holy shit! Mickie felt an explosion of desire as John rubbed her through her panties. Her hand skimmed down his stomach and she heard a thud as something fell to the floor. John was moving her over the desk. She could hear the paper scattering around her as she lay down on the wood. Her heart was hammering wildly in her chest. She could feel John sliding her underwear down her legs and her body burned with anticipation. She needed to feel him inside her now. She couldn't wait another single second. Mickie's eyes popped open as she lifted up her hips. John was watching her silently as his hands moved up her legs. His beautiful blue eyes were dark with desire. She swallowed thickly under the intensity of his stare.

"Mickie." he said huskily as his head lowered towards her middle. She squeezed her eyes shut as her fingers threaded through his short hair.

"Mickie."

The hand on her shoulder made her jump. Her pen fell from her fingers to her desk. She glanced around disorientated.

"Are you okay?"

She looked up to see Sandy looking at her strangely. Her strong perfume lingered around her. As her head began to clear, Mickie realised she had been daydreaming. An image of John going down on her made her cheeks instantly flush with heat. She straightened up in her seat and tried her best to compose herself. Keeling over with desire wasn't covered in the first aid hand book not to mention the fact she didn't want the ugly freak from downstairs slobbering over her. As the official first aider for this department, he'd see it as the perfect opportunity to administer mouth to mouth. She could feel her breakfast churning in her stomach at the thought of it already. He'd tried it on poor Harrett from personnel only last week.

"You're looking awfully red."

Mickie cleared her throat. "I'm fine." Her fingers rubbed across her forehead. "I just zoned out for a minute there. I was trying to think of ideas for the article." she smiled.

Sandy nodded as she took a sip from the mug of coffee in her hands. "You must have come in early today. It's not even nine yet."

"I had things to do."

Sandy smiled. The truth was she'd come in early to see John if she could. She knew he was usually the first to arrive and she wanted even a moment alone with him. Pathetic but it was true. She was totally desperate. Ever since their date, she just couldn't get him out of her head. The goodnight kiss had been replayed over and over in her mind. So much so that she wanted to feel his lips on hers again. After all, if they were alone, a little good morning embrace wouldn't be out of the question. That's what people did when they dated and she and John were good as dating. Well maybe, sort of. Nothing was official as such but there was something definitely going on and John had promised more. But unfortunately he still hadn't arrived yet. Knowing her luck, he'd probably be stuck in damn meetings all day.

"So have you heard the news?"

Mickie felt her hairs on the back of her neck bristle in annoyance. Mary the Big Mouth stood in front of her. Her small piggy eyes looked between herself and Sandy. She was like the cat that had the cream. She was smiling smugly. Mickie was tempted to bring up her vomiting and wipe it from her face but she wouldn't. Not when her own drunkenness could be brought into the conversation. God knows what she had done. Half of the night was a blur to her. She clicked on her mouse and opened up her e-mail. Rachel was supposed to be sending a picture of Tim, her mysterious fiancé.

"What news?" asked Sandy

"It's about John."

All thoughts of e-mail left Mickie's mind as she looked up at Sandy. She was beaming widely. She looked about ready to burst with her news. What the fuck did she know? Surely it wasn't about her. No one knew unless they'd guessed something was going on. Maybe it was obvious from her flushed face or the blouse she'd handpicked this morning. She'd taken extra care with her makeup too. After all, a girl wanted to look her best although she didn't want to make it too obvious. She didn't want to arouse anyone's suspicions. But even if she had, surely even Mary couldn't be brazen enough to mention it to her face. Mickie's hand absently rubbed at her stomach. It was churning anxiously. She wished the bitch would just hurry up and spill it. She was dragging this one out

"It turns out he's not young, free and single after all." said Mary.

Her eyes settled on Mickie. They were practically taunting her. Mickie felt her stomach drop. She knew. She had to. But how the fuck did she find out? They'd been careful. No one had seen them leave together on Friday. Even if they had, John was only helping her home. Nothing had happened between them, not at Lindsey's party. There was no way Mary could know about them. Could she?

"How do you know?" asked Sandy.

Mary turned and smiled at her. "I was waiting on the elevator downstairs and I overheard Jack talking to John in the lobby. He mentioned he had seen him at some restaurant Saturday night."

Her voice trailed off. Mickie's heart was heavy. So Jack had seen them together after all. Shit. And now she wouldn't get to go out with John again. The owner of the company frowned upon inter office relations especially when it involved a man in a position like John's. That's why Harper William had been fired for his affair with Lindsey. Now they would never have the chance to be together. She wouldn't let John lose his job. The whole thing was over before it had even had the chance to begin. Fucking Jack! And now it would be all over the building by lunch time. Mary would see to that. Knowing that bitch, she's already prepared her company e-mail to circulate. Stephanie fought the urge to suddenly scream.

"Who was he with? Did he say?" asked Sandy.

Mickie swallowed the lump in her throat and glanced down at her desk not giving Mary the satisfaction of even looking at her.

"shit. Here they come."

Mickie's head jerked up and saw her colleagues disappear quickly to their desks. Checking to see no one was looking, she peered over the top of her cubicle. She saw him speaking to Jack just outside the board room. He was facing her. Her blood was beating in her ears. John was wearing a dark navy suit with an open necked white shirt. He wasn't wearing a tie today. He was smiling and Mickie couldn't stop her own lips from upturning slightly. His grin was so infectious. It also made her weak at the knees. She sighed as she slumped back down on her chair. Life was so not fair. The man was fucking gorgeous and just when she was so close to having him, she was going to be denied. It didn't matter that he was gripped by her. It didn't matter that she was falling for him. Some stupid fucking rule meant they couldn't be together. Now she would be forced to be nothing but professional around him when all she wanted to do was just be with him. Maybe she could persuade him to have one night of passion anyway. It was so wrong that she would never get to sleep with him. She knew John was going to be the best sex of her life. It was only right that she got to experience that damn it.

"Good morning Mickie."

Jack's voice startled her. What was it with people sneaking up on her today? Her nerves couldn't take it. Not now. She was a wreck.

"Could John and I see you for a second in the board room?"

Mickie swallowed thickly and nodded her head. He was smiling at her and it made her even more suspicious. Jack never smiled at her like that ever. Well, only if it was some misfortune on her part. He seemed to find it terribly amusing. Finding out about her and John had probably made his week. Bastard! She'd spit in his coffee. Mickie stood up from her chair and followed him. She could see John was already sitting at the table through the gaps in the open blinds. Her shaky hands smoothed down the wrinkles in her skirt. Sandy was talking on the phone. She gave Mickie a smile as she walked past her desk.

"After you." gestured Jack as he stood at the side of the wooden panelled door.

Mickie nodded her thanks as she brushed past him. Now he was being courteous as well as friendly. She was definitely screwed then. As she walked tentatively into the room, John glanced up from his seat and smiled softly at her. Their eyes connected and she felt a jolt in her chest. Would it be crazy to offer them her resignation? Her job meant the world to her but somehow she felt this man could mean so much more. She'd never been this way over any one in her life. John was like a magnet pulling her in. She was even day dreaming about him at work for crying out loud. She was practically bordering on obsessed.

"Take a seat, Micks." said John.

She sighed softly under her breath. She adored how he said her name. He stood up and pulled out the chair next to him. It reminded her of their date when he had opened the car door for her. He was so courteous and polite. John knew his manners. He was a perfect gentleman.

"Jack and I wanted to discuss something with you."

Mickie nodded and swallowed hard as she sat down. Her fingers tapped nervously against her leg. John's thick forearms leant on the table. This was it. The moment of truth. Maybe she'd suit that white apron the waitresses wore at Starbucks. It wasn't flattering but maybe she could dress it up and make it look better. She could wear a flower or something. A purple tulip would look pretty. She could dazzle John with her array of knowledge on frappes and cappuccinos.

"It only came to my attention this morning." he said apologetically.

Yeah thanks to Jack and his beady little eyes. Couldn't he at least have shown some discretion and pretended he hadn't seen them together on Saturday?

"John agrees with me that it's the best solution." continued Jack. He was smiling at her again. He had pushed his glasses onto his forehead. Honestly, did he realise how lame he looked like that? Maybe she'd just tell him once this was all over. After all, there was no need to hold back any more. Starbucks wouldn't care that she thought Jack was retarded. If they saw him, they'd probably agree with her. His Hawaiian print shirts were absolutely disgusting. Who the fuck thought wearing pink pelicans was cool anyway?

"We really can't afford not to act on it straight away otherwise we could find ourselves in one hell of a mess."

We? This was a we? Since when did any of this involve Jack. Okay, he'd rumbled them but there was no need to pretend he gave a crap. He was probably taking immense joy from this after all there was nothing he liked better than making her life a misery. Stephanie sighed and glanced briefly at John. He was looking at Jack as he rubbed at the tip of his nose.

"Although the ball is totally in your court. We know it's a lot to take on. It's totally your decision."

Mickie's eyes drifted between Jack and John. Her nose scrunched in confusion. What on earth was going on here? Her decision? What decision and what did Nick mean and why was John smiling at her like that? He could at least have the decency to look bothered by this. He was meant to be gripped by her after all. He should be as devastated as she felt.

"Let me explain what Jack is trying to say." smiled John "Lindsey's replacement can't start for another couple of weeks so I was wondering if you would mind taking on a little bit extra and helping out?"

Mickie stared at him for a moment as his words sunk in. They wanted her to be John's temporary assistant. What happened to Saturday night and Jack seeing them at the restaurant?

"We'll obviously come to an arrangement on your salary and pay you accordingly." said Jack.

Mickie nodded as she chewed on her lip. Little did Jack know that she would help Johnout of the goodness of her heart! She'd also put a new meaning to the word "personal" assistant.

"We'll let you think about it. You don't have to decide right this second."

Mickie shook her head and cleared her throat. Her brown eyes settled on John. "That's okay. I'd be more than happy to do it."

As John smiled at her, he winked. Mickie fought the urge to grin and bit down on her lip to stop it. She didn't want to give Jack any ammunition.

"In that case, I'll go and speak with Mary. She'll be taking on your lighter roles."

Mickie smiled at Jack as he stood up. She tried to hide the fact that she was actually pissed off about that. Yes, working with John had lots of benefits but one of them wasn't Mandy muscling in on her territory. The bitch wanted her job as it was. Giving her any sort of opportunity was bad news. Just then it hit her. Jack was leaving already. Wasn't he going to mention seeing them Saturday? After all, Mary had heard him mention it to John. The door clicked shut behind him.

"Are you sure you don't mind us springing this on you?"

Mickie licked her lips and shook her head. She flicked her hair back from her shoulder.

"Good because quite honestly, you're the only person that came to mind when Jack told me the news this morning."

A slow grin crept across Mickie's face. John was leaning forward on the table. "And why would that be?"

"Oh I don't know." he winked again.

His hand reached across and covered hers as it rested on her lap. Mickie quickly glanced towards the large glass windows. No one was looking and the tilted blinds meant they probably couldn't make them out anyway. She looked back at John. His beautiful blue eyes were watching her.

"By the way, I had a good time Saturday."

"Me too." Mickie leant closer towards him. Her teeth pulled on the inside of her lip worriedly. She could smell his cologne and it made her giddy. John slid his fingers through hers. "But what about Jack? Did he mention seeing us at all?"

She didn't tell him what Mary had told her. After all, she wasn't a gossip and she didn't want to cause trouble. Maybe Johnwas an extremely private person. Maybe he would take exception to Mary discussing his private life and as much as she hated the bitch, she didn't want to land her in it. But still she had to know.

"Yeah, he did but you don't have to worry. He didn't see you."

"He didn't?"

John shook his head and a lock of hair fell across his eye. "He saw me kissing someone that was all."

"And he didn't ask who it was?"

John nodded his head. "I just told him it was a girl I was dating."

Dating! John said they were actually dating. Mickie fought the urge to squeal with excitement. "So your plan worked huh?"

"Yeah, I guess it did."

A slow grin spread across his face as his finger pushed his hair across his forehead. John's thumb was rubbing small circles on the back of her hand. Mickie felt the heat rush to her cheeks as the mental image of John throwing her across his desk entered her head. Not a good thing to be doing when he was sitting less a foot away and all she wanted to do was rip off his clothes right now. Thank God she had some self restraint. Well that and she wasn't an exhibitionist. There were at least ten people outside this room and she wasn't providing them with a peep show. The blinds didn't provide that much protection.

"Plus there was method to my madness. It meant I didn't have to wait until the end of the night to kiss you." said John

Mickie bit down on her lip feeling mesmerised by his amazing eyes. "You know you can kiss me any time you want."

John grinned and she became aware of what she had just said. Mickie shifted uncomfortably in her seat. What on earth was wrong with her? Words just tumbled out of her mouth when she was with him. She didn't even realise what she was saying half the time. What had happened to that self restraint? Once again, she was practically throwing herself at him. She didn't want John to get the wrong impression of her. Mickie cleared her hot, dry throat.

"But not here of course. After all, we are at work and I know you want to keep things professional." She pushed a strand of hair behind her ear. "I do too. We shouldn't mix business with pleasure."

"I agree." John pressed his lips together as he gave her a sage nod. He looked at her, his mouth slowly upturning at the left hand corner. The sun suddenly filtered through the window flecking his hair with gold. She swore she could smell his conditioner mixed in with his cologne. It was heavenly. "Although in my opinion all work and no play can be pretty boring."

Mickie found herself blushing as he smirked at her sexily. Maybe behind the closed door of his office a kiss or two would be allowed. After all she was his personal assistant. There was nothing wrong with giving him a little personal attention.

"Anyway, I guess I'd better go. I've got a meeting in five minutes." said John as he glanced at his gold watch. His fingers trailed over hers as he let of her hand. He pushed back his chair and got to his feet. "Maybe we can catch up after lunch? We can talk about the job in more detail then. We haven't really had the chance to discuss it."

Mickie nodded her head and stood up. Her hand smoothed down her skirt.

"After you." smiled John as he gestured towards the door.

Mickie's heels sunk into the thick, plush carpet. Her hand was on the shiny brass door knob when she felt him tug her on her arm. His big blue eyes were twinkling at her as he pulled her over towards the corner of the room.

"No one can see us here." he grinned.

Her heart pounded in her chest as John pressed her back into the wall. He leaned forward and his lips brushed against hers ever so softly stealing her breath away. His lips felt like warm silk against hers.

"I thought I'd take you up on your offer. I've wanted to do that all morning." he said huskily as he tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. Butterflies fluttered in her chest. His thumb lightly brushed her cheek as he pulled away. "But now I really have to go."

Mickie nodded and smiled as she followed him to the door. Her heart was thumping away in her chest. She could still feel his lips on hers. Yet as they walked into the main office, she didn't even glance at John once as he disappeared down the corridor. After all she was meant to be the soul of discretion. No one had even looked over in her direction either. God, she was obviously good at all this. Mickie flicked back her hair and sat at her desk. She couldn't help the smile that erupted across her face. Working with John was definitely going to have its own little benefits and then some.


	12. Chapter 12

Mickie sighed heavily as she put the book back on the shelf. She hadn't seen John in three whole days. Monday morning he had flown to San Diego chasing some major account and she hadn't heard a peep from him since. He hadn't even called into the office. Of course Jack had been a total asshole in his absence. He really thought he was the shit when he was in charge. He was permanently on her case nitpicking about something. That was why she had e-mailed Rachel to meet her for lunch and get her the hell out of there. She'd just had to catch a breather from that office before her head totally exploded.

"There you are!"

Mickie turned round to see Rachel with two large bags in her hand. She smiled at her friend.

You found something then?"

"I did and Tim is going to love it."

"Do I even want to ask?"

Rachel laughed as they made their way towards the escalators weaving between the busy shoppers. "Let's just say it's very minimal and see through." She smirked as she nudged Mickie with her arm.

"I'm sure someone like John would appreciate it too."

"I'm afraid I wouldn't know." she sighed tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. They stepped onto the descending escalator. But wouldn't she just love the chance to find out if he did. She had bought some new lingerie just last week. Maybe she would wear that on their date tomorrow night just in case. After all John had practically said they would move to that next level. Well not exactly but it had been close enough. His exact words had been that they would take it from there. Surely that had to mean something. Of course there was the tiny issue of whether there would still be a date. Maybe John would still be caught up in San Diego. Maybe he wouldn't be home for the weekend. But surely he would call her and tell her if that was the case. He just couldn't leave her hanging.

"I take it you still haven't heard from him." asked Rachel noticing her friend's sullen expression.

"No." sighed Mickie

"I'm sure he's been really busy and hasn't had the chance to call, that's all."

Mickie tried to shrug her shoulders non-chalantly as they stepped off the elevator. Her heels clicked against the marble floor. "I really don't care."

"Liar!" laughed Rachel before sidestepping at an elderly gentleman who had blocked their path by dumping his shopping bag in front of them. "Of course you care. You're completely besotted with the guy."

Mickie immediately nodded her head and smiled meekly at her friend. "I'm pathetic, huh?"

"Of course not Micks, the man is a walking God! Half the fucking office building think he's hot. I'm telling you, the minute anyone finds out about you, you'll get your eyes scratched out."

Mickie shook her head in amusement as they stepped outside into the chilly afternoon air. The newly mounted Christmas lights twinkled dimly in the low sun. Rachel glanced at her watch as they jogged down the concrete steps. Mickie adjusted the strap on her shoulder and fastened the button on her coat.

"Fuck!" Rachel suddenly screamed out loud. A couple of pedestrians threw her a dirty glance. She noticed them and flipped them off as she grabbed hold of Mickie's arm and began pulling her along the street.

"You do realise its now fifteen minutes past two."

"What?" screeched Mickie in disbelief.

"You have to be fucking kidding me."

She felt herself begin to panic as she quickly glanced at the traffic. Spotting a gap, she ran with Rachel across the road, her hair flying behind her "I had a meeting at two o'clock. Jack will have a fucking field day with this one."

The large glass office building was just in front of them. Mickie approached the large double doors with dread. Why did this always happen to her? She'd been watching the time carefully. Or at least she thought she had. Now all she could hope for was that the meeting had been cancelled or delayed. Surely that wasn't too much to ask for. They both rushed into the deserted lobby and quickly ascended the staircase. Rachel grabbed Mickie's bags from her at the top. She smiled at her friend gratefully and dashed towards the office. The last thing she needed was to give Jack any ammunition this afternoon. Her life was going to be hell as it was.

The office was silent just as she expected. The board room door was . This was turning into the week from hell. Now she'd have to walk in there and have everyone watch as Jack tore a strip off her. Fucker! If he really laid into her, she'd put a laxative in his drink. She'd seen that in a movie once and had always had the urge to try it. Jack would be the perfect experiment. Mickie quickly unbuttoned her coat and threw it across the back of her chair before picking up her notepad and pen. That was when she noticed the scattered files across her desk. She felt herself bristle with annoyance. That bitch Mary had been raking through her damn stuff once again. It had only been a couple of days but already she was driving her mad. She was constantly hassling her for information on this or pointers on that. That's when she wasn't sucking up to Jack in between. She'd even had the gall today to suggest a couple of changes to a promotion she had recently completed. Mary was trying her best to completely muscle in on her territory. And now she'd obviously progressed to just helping herself to her stuff. Mickie walked away before her head completely exploded. Before she left this afternoon, she was going to have a word with Mary before this whole situation got out of hand. If the bitch was going to take things, she could fucking put them back where they came from! Letting out a calming breath, Mickie smoothed down her black pencil skirt. It was time to face the firing range.

She turned the shiny handle and her head was bowed as she entered the room. She could hear Jack stop in mid conversation and she was sure her hand shook as she attached her pen to her notepad.

"Mickie! How nice of you to finally join us this afternoon."

She could feel everyone's eyes upon her as the door clicked quietly shut. Bastard! He just had to draw attention to her presence. Couldn't he have let her slip in quietly? She slowly lifted her head. Jack was standing frowning directly in front of her. He had that pointy stick thing in his hand. He liked to smack it against charts and look important. If he embarrassed her any further she'd smack it off his head.

"Sorry. My dentist appointment ran late." she lied as she slid into an empty seat next to Sandy.

Luckily it was at the foot of the table. Sandy gave her a sympathetic smile as she placed down her notepad and pen. Her perfume hung around her thickly. Mickie resisted the urge to it was totally overpowering. Jack began rambling again as she pulled in her chair. As she clicked her pen, she glanced up and flicked her hair over her shoulder. Her heart almost jumped out of her chest when she saw him. John was sitting at the top of the table nodding his head as Jack demonstrated something to him. Where did he come from and how did he get here? He hadn't been here when she had left. Aware that she was probably staring at him, Mickie lowered her head and lifted her eyes. She felt bubbles of excitement in the pit of her stomach as she sat and observed him discreetly. He looked absolutely gorgeous in a white dress shirt. His purple silk tie sat loose around the unbuttoned collar. He was doing that cute flipping of the pen thing he did when he was concentrating. It rested on the top of his head for a fraction of a second before falling to the waxed wooden table.

Just then he turned his head in her direction. His blue eyes twinkled as he briefly winked at her. Mickie felt the corners of her mouth start to twitch and she looked down at her notepad. One second longer and she would have been grinning at him like an idiot. She honestly couldn't believe he was really sitting here. Suddenly all the stresses of the past few days seemed a million miles away.

"Mickie, what's your take on this?" asked Jack

Well then again, maybe not. Mickie shifted in her chair uncomfortably as she glanced over at Jack and tried to gauge what the fuck he was talking about. Her take on what exactly? How stupid he looked with that stupid goatee he was sporting? Mickie's eyes frantically scanned the poster he was pointing towards.

"Tell me what your first impression is when you read this." he continued slightly impatient.

Basing teenagers were what sprung to her mind. But of course she couldn't say that not without looking totally stupid. She felt everyone's eyes on her once more as she tried her best to concentrate. Mary coughed and she deliberately ignored her. It was a woman's health promotion that much she could gather. She knew Jack had been working on this yesterday. What the fuck would do kids have to do with that though?

"Mickie?" prompted Jack

"Child abuse." she blurted out before she even realised. Jack's jaw line clenched as he glared in her direction. Okay. It wasn't fucking abuse then but he was the one who had pressured her to give her opinion. As she let herself glance across at John, she saw him watching her. He smiled at her in a way that butterflies fluttered in her chest.

"Thank you." he said simply before turning back to Jack.

"I told you about that. Take that back to the writing department and tell them to get their heads out their ass and think of something else. Then you'd better call Jane and tell her she'll have to wait until next week." Jack nodded meekly as John threw his pen down on the desk.

Mickie bit back her smile as she resisted the urge to laugh. What the hell was that all about? She given up trying to figure it out by the time the meeting had ended. She pushed back her chair and silently congratulated herself. She'd finally worked out what she would be wearing tomorrow night. Those black leather boots would go perfect with her jeans and her black cashmere sweater. It had a plunging neckline and she had a lovely little belt to go around the waist. She just hoped her new credit card had arrived in the post this morning. They had said three days and that had been over five days ago. Didn't they realise how dependent she was on the damn thing? Thanks to her little lunchtime shopping spree she was on a strict budget for the rest of the month and then she'd had to replace her hair straighteners too. That had been an absolutely essential purchase.

"Mickie, can we go over the promotion for the Natruition artcle we discussed this morning?"

Mickie raised her head and forced a smile in Mary's direction. Her little piggy eyes were peering in her direction. She had that pathetic voice she used that implied butter wouldn't melt, the one she used constantly around John and Jack. She really was a suck-up.

"Sure." she replied.

"I've got a few concerns."

"Concerns?" asked Mickie as she tried to remain calm and gathered her notepad and pen. John was standing up and checking his cell phone. He was chewing on his lip and his brow was furrowed.

"Yes. I don't think we've quite grasped the full idea of the product. I think we could make a couple of changes. She smiled at her.

Mickie slowly exhaled a breath. Who the fuck did she think she was? She had worked really hard on that promotion. Mary knew that. Even Jack had congratulated her albeit probably grudgingly and now she had the nerve to question her on it for the second time that day. She knew the bitch wanted her job but this was insane. She cleared her throat as she tried not to explode.

"The article has been approved and submitted already."

"Not the final draft. The writing department are just applying the finishing touches. I checked with them today."

Mickei gritted her teeth. "Oh you did, did you?"

Mary nodded her head. "So can we discuss it?"

"I'm afraid not." interrupted John as he stood beside them. "I really need Mickie to work on some stuff this afternoon."

Mickie smiled when she saw Mary's face while she said "Of course." she muttered before she skulked off in the direction of the main office.

Mickie had the urge to grab John and kiss him right there right now. She had missed him which was totally crazy when she thought about it. He'd only been in her life for a matter of weeks yet somehow he'd turned her whole world upside down.

"Can you give me five minutes or so?" he asked. "I just need to talk with Jack. I'll catch you at your desk."

Mickie nodded and headed back to her cubicle. She tried to ignore the scattered files that had angered her earlier. She wasn't going to dwell on those now, not when she would be seeing John in a matter of minutes. Throwing down her notepad and pen, she pulled out her drawer. She rummaged to the back where she knew the chocolate treat was hidden and unwrapping the bar, she took a huge bite. It was her release for moments of extreme stress just like this week. In fact, it had been a miracle that it had lasted until today. As she chewed on the mixture of caramel and nuts, she closed her eyes and began to feel calmer. God bless Nestle and the hell with Mary.

"It's no wonder you have to visit the dentist when you eat those things."

Mickie opened her eyes as she tried to brush off her irritation. Mary was hovering by her cubicle and she decided to ignore her. Instead she took another large bite and sat down in her chair. She wasn't going to react to her. Instead she picked up a pen and spied the outfit list she had made earlier and her heart lifted as she thought about her date. Her brown eyes eagerly scanned over the piece of paper wondering if there was another outfit that she could wear those boots with. She chewed thoughtfully thinking about Rachel's cream sweater. She had yet to return it waiting for the right moment to sneak it back into her drawer. It would look great with her blue jeans. Mickie continued to chew thoughtfully as she weighed up her options.

"That piece of paper must be extremely interesting."

Mickie jumped at John's voice and hastily placed the piece of paper face down on her desk. The blood beat in her ears. There was no chance she could risk him seeing what was on there. As well as her outfits, she'd doodled his name a couple of times thinking how pretty it looked on the paper. One even had a heart drawn round it. Talk about embarrassing! God, she was such a girl when it came to this man. She looked up to see him leaning over the top of her cubicle. He wore that sexy smirk, the one that made her want to jump him without hesitation.

"Something on there you don't want me to see?" he teased.

"No." she said abruptly. She felt the heat rush to her cheeks. John grinned as he gestured towards the corridor.

"We can talk in my office when you're ready."

She smiled and watched him disappear down the hall. Satisfied he was gone, she reached down and grabbed her bag. She raked inside until she found her lip gloss. She hastily applied it and sprayed a little perfume to her wrists. She didn't worry about anyone noticing. Sandy's fragrance had pretty much ruined everyone's sense of smell around here. Sniffing her wrist discreetly, she frowned and applied another squirt. Running her tongue across her teeth, she didn't feel any trace of chocolate. Satisfied, she was looking her best Mickie made her way to his office. Of course no one paid her the slightest bit of attention. After all, she was John's personal assistant and the total soul of discretion. She was so good at it not one person suspected a thing. Of course she'd had practice with the whole Michael situation. Not that she was thinking about that. That creep was well and truly history. He could rot in hell for all she cared.

Mickie knocked on the door and walked into John's office. He lifted his head and smiled at her as he stood behind his desk. It was practically empty reminding her that he had been gone for most of the week. The sun shone through the glass pane window. It flecked his hair with hints of gold. Mickie shifted her feet on the carpeted floor as John walked around the desk. He sat down on the heavy oak and his deep brown eyes searched her face.

"How have you been?" he asked.

"Good." she smiled. "And you? How was the trip?"

"It was pretty successful all in all. We got the account."

Mickie beamed at him proudly. "Congratulations, John."

"Thank you." he grinned. "I thought it was touch and go for a while but the bastards just wanted to make us sweat. They'd made their decision two days ago but wanted to see if they could screw us further on the terms of the contract. It's pretty normal practice nowadays."

Mickie nodded her head.

"Anyway, they finally signed this morning which meant I managed to get an earlier flight which was just as well what with that fucking abuse thing." He shook his head and looked totally exasperated. "What the fuck was Jack thinking? Mickie pressed her lips together as she resisted the urge to laugh. She actually found the whole thing hilarious. The only thing was John looked less than impressed. "I mean I know it's meant to represent child health and all but would you buy vitamins or a health drink with that kind of article targeting kids like that?" he asked.

Mickie remained silent as she slowly shook her head.

"Neither would I. It's a god damn joke. I mean fucking abuse, Micks!"

Just hearing John say the word ovary again was enough to tip her over the edge and Mickie gave a little snort before bursting into laughter. John looked at her astonished for a second before his big blue eyes crinkled and he began laughing too. She loved his laugh. It was so deep and it made his shoulders shake. His nose was screwed up so cutely too. As he reached for her hand, she felt her body tingle and he held it gently as he pulled her closer towards him. Their laughter died away and Mickie's heart thumped against her ribcage as he looked deeply into her eyes.

"I missed you, you know."

A shy lop sided grin crossed her face. "I missed you too." she admitted.

"I meant to call you."

Mickie shook her head immediately not wanting the situation to get awkward. She understood and she wanted him to know she did. "It's okay. I know you were busy what with meetings and everything."

"Well yeah but that's not the reason why I didn't call." He smiled and his thumb began to lightly trace her knuckles. "I had planned to. I even had the phone in my hand but then I suddenly realised I didn't have your number."

Mickie's grin widened. See, she knew there would be an explanation for it all. Well, at least most of the time she did. She was entitled to a few wobbly moments surely. She was hormonal for God sakes. She wasn't meant to be logical right now and she certainly hadn't been last night when she had ranted to Rachel about John. Of course that had been after she had drunk an entire bottle of wine and had wallowed in her own self pity. It had taken Rachel over an hour to eventually calm her down. She had reassured her that John did care about her and he had proved that just now. God, he had told her he had missed her. Mickie felt her head get a little giddy.

"I've never been in this situation before you know. Usually I get the number before a girl offers to show me her lingerie." smirked John as he brought her even closer, her legs brushing against his.

"Well I guess I'm not like most girls." she replied.

"You got that right." His blue eyes sparkled brightly at her as he brought his face towards hers. "And quite frankly I wouldn't have you any other way." he hushed.

Mickie's breath caught in her throat as his lips caressed hers ever so softly. Then he kissed her again, this time more insistently. Unable to help herself, Mickie eagerly returned the kiss and moaned as she felt John's tongue lightly brush over hers. She could feel her knees go weak. He moved his left hand to her head as he tangled his fingers in her soft, brown hair. Her heart hammered in her chest as she felt herself getting completely lost in his embrace. His words repeated themselves over in her head. John didn't want her to be any other way. She wondered if that meant he was falling for her because she was falling for him if she hadn't fallen hard already. Although who was she kidding. She had fallen a long time ago. From the moment she had met him on that train she knew. Even in her alcohol induced state she had recognised the butterflies. Her mother had told her never to lose the butterflies and she had no intention of doing so. Now all she had to do was a find some way not to fuck this one up. John was far too important to her now.


	13. Chapter 13

The second date. This was the one where you set out future possibilities by getting to know each other and having fun. At least she had that base covered tonight. No alcohol of any kind would be involved in a movie theatre which meant she would feel less inclined to blurt out how incredible John smelled. God, she still cringed every time she remembered telling him that. It was one of many embarrassing moments she had found herself in that night. But there had been some amazing moments too including that kiss on the bench underneath the stars. Humming contentedly to herself, Mickie stepped back from the mirror and lifted up her perfume bottle spraying her neck and wrists with the fragrance before pausing for a second. A slow smile traced her lips as she lifted the neck of the sweater and sprayed liberally down her cleavage. Rachel had told her you needed a blast for luck and she was definitely someone who needed all the luck she could get.

Mickie placed down the perfume bottle on the dresser just as she heard a car pull up outside. Her brown eyes went wide as she quickly raced to the bedroom window and pulling back the curtain, she recognised the black vehicle. It was John. Bubbles of excitement formed in her stomach as she quickly grabbed her brown leather coat and bag from the bed and checked her reflection one last time. She gave an audible groan as she closed the bedroom door behind her pushing her arms through her coat sleeves. Thank God the movie theatre would be dark. She flicked her hair over her collar and cautiously walked down the stairs gripping onto the banister. She was wearing her newly purchased leather boots tonight and they were a little higher than she was used to. If she went any faster she would probably trip and break her neck. Not the start to the evening she wanted.

Mickie opened the door without thinking and stepped outside into the cold evening air. The wind nipped her cheeks as the door clicked shut behind her and she placed her bag over her shoulder. That's when she noticed John just getting out of the car. Shit. Why did she come out here? She was appearing way too eager. John hadn't even knocked on the door. He would know she had been looking out for him. What the hell was she doing? Mickie glanced back at the door. Maybe she had time to rush back in before he turned around and spotted her.

"Good God woman!"

Nope. Too late. Mickie slowly turned back round with an awkward, embarrassed smile on her face. John was standing just a couple of feet away. His beautiful hair was blowing behind him in the wind and he was wearing a northface jacket and faded blue jeans. Those were the clothes he had been wearing on the train the first time she had met him. He even had the same amused sexy smirk on his face. The smirk that made her feel like just grabbing him and mauling him but she was going slow. But if she thought he had looked gorgeous then, he was even more gorgeous now. Sweet Jesus! The man was absolute perfection.

"Not only are you on time but you're actually out here waiting for me?! I am privileged."

Mickie grinned as she felt a sudden rush of nervous energy. John was now standing directly in front of her. She really had no control when it came to him. He rendered her practically hopeless.

"You are but you know, for the record you're actually a couple of minutes late."

"I know and I apologise for that." he replied before bending down and brushing his lips softly across her cheek. Mickie's eyes briefly closed at the contact as her heart flipped in her chest. She breathed him in and felt her knees tremble slightly as he gently rubbed her arm.

"Come on. Let's get you in the car. It's freezing out here."

Mickie followed John to the passenger door and smiled her thanks as he helped her into the car. She placed her bag at her feet and settled in her seat as John hopped in beside her. He turned his head and smiled as he placed the keys in the ignition.

"You look really pretty tonight by the way."

Mickie bit down on her lip shyly to stop herself from grinning like an idiot. She silently flipped off Bliss as John started up the engine.

Mickie shifted in her seat enjoying the warmth that she could feel radiating through the leather.

"Are you sure you're warm enough? I can turn up the heat."

"I'm good, thank you." she replied.

Mickie inwardly smiled as John's hand reached across and covered hers squeezing it gently. She could feel the warmth of his palm as it rested there on her lap. John had been so sweet to her tonight. The kiss and the hand holding had been a perfect start. She wondered what else she could expect. Maybe more hand holding in the movie theatre or even some kissing in the back row. She'd never been in a back row seat with a guy before. Maybe that would change tonight although it wouldn't matter where they sat. She would still want to hold him and hug him and kiss him. God, all she wanted to do when she was with him was touch him. It was like her emotions were taking over. Profound feelings. Intense experiences. Scary opportunities. The only thing that scared her was waking up one morning to find all of this was gone because this was what she wanted. This was everything she wanted.

Time disappeared and before she knew it, the car was parked and they were walking along the street with John's fingers linked through hers. Her heels clicked in time with his footsteps. The cold breeze blew through her curls. She could smell the vanilla scent of her perfume. Fuck, it was overpowering actually. Maybe she'd overdone it. Mickie tried to discreetly lift her wrist to her nose to check if she had succumbed to the Sandy syndrome, the main symptom being an overbearing smell with the ability to make people gag. Fortunately John wasn't puking, well at least not yet.

As Mickie sniffed, she misjudged the corner of the kerb and her foot keeled over to the side and slipped off the sidewalk. The blood beat in her ears and the heat immediately rushed to her cheeks as she felt John tug her towards him back from the road. A car slowly rumbled past. His concerned blue eyes were narrowed in her direction.

"Are you okay?"

She nodded as she guided a few loose strands of hair behind her ear. Her heart was beating madly in her chest.

"You know, I think I'll be happier with you on the inside where I know you'll be safe."

He pulled her over to his left and his fingers slid through hers once again as they walked towards the movie theatre. Mickie felt a warm glow at his need to protect her and tried to ignore the shot of pain in her left ankle. It was nothing really, just a little twinge more than anything else. Besides the movie theatre was only a few feet away. With any luck she would be sitting down in a matter of minutes.

"I don't know how you can walk in those heels anyway. They look damn lethal to me."

"They can be." Mickie grinned at John momentarily forgetting the dull throbbing in her foot.

"Ever see Single White Female where she whacks the guy in the forehead with her stiletto?"

Mickie shook his head and chuckled. "You know I don't think I like that little glint you've got in your eye. You obviously enjoyed that part way too much."

He held open the heavy glass door for her letting go of her hand and stepping aside to let her pass. The heat inside instantly thawed the tip of her nose which had considerably numbed from the cold. She adjusted the strap of her handbag as she took in her surroundings. It had been ages since she had been here. People were milling around the busy lobby that smelled of popcorn and hotdogs. Of course it was Saturday night, a popular date night. The majority of people were couples holding hands or some had their arms wrapped around one another although one couple just in front of them needed to bypass the whole movie idea and head straight to the bedroom. Their tongues were down one another throats practically devouring one another.

She turned her head to John "You know that's practically pornographic. I hope they're not watching the same movie as us. Can you imagine having to endure seeing that for two entire hours?"

"It's enough to put you off your popcorn." he smirked.

"I'm being serious, John. There's really no need to be doing that in front of everyone. There could be kids here for godsakes."

John laughed, his deep chuckle shaking his shoulders.

"Not that I'm a prude or anything." Mickie added quickly. She didn't want John getting the wrong impression. She wasn't against public displays of affection as such and especially not when it involved a kiss or two from him. "It's just that there is a time and a place and this is not it."

"You're absolutely right." John placed his hand on her back and smiled. "Come on. Let's leave them to it and go and pick a movie."

They wandered towards the end of the lobby where the movies were listed and the ticket booth was located. A group of teenage boys and girls standing a matter of feet in front of them broke away and that was when Mickie spotted the familiar Hawaiian print shirt. Her mouth dropped open in a stunned surprise before panic quickly took over. "Fuck! Not again!" she hissed before grabbing John's arm and tugging him away. She felt the sharp pain in her foot as they walked quickly.

"Not what again?" he asked, confused as he tried to look back over his shoulder. He apologised to a couple he almost barged into as he tried to keep up with her.

"Don't look back!" she said looking around her for the nearest escape. Her heart was racing in her chest. She swore they had been practically looking in their direction. Maybe they'd even spotted them. "They'll see you."

"Who'll see me?"

"Jack and his wife, that's who!"

John snorted in disbelief. "Get out of here! Where?"

"They're at the end of the lobby by the ticket booth." Mickie checked over her shoulder and gave a panicked squeal as she saw them headed in their direction. "Shit! They're coming this way."

She spotted the large free standing billboard directly in front of them and she quickly disappeared behind it, pulling John with her and squeezing in the space between the painted wall and the board. His blue eyes were sparkling with amusement as his shoulder rubbed against hers. She could feel him shake with laughter. She was glad he found the whole thing so damn funny. It wouldn't be funny when she was serving coffee at Starbucks and making absolute peanuts for a living.

"You know this is totally fucked up." he grinned.

Mickie raised her eyebrows fractionally before trying to discreetly poke her head around the corner to see if Jack was gone. Fucking bastard. He was ruining her date. For all she knew, he was probably in cahoots with karma. She saw him still standing at the popcorn stand and silently cursed at him again. Didn't he have a movie to catch or something? He needed to get the hell out of there.

"I mean really, what are the chances of this happening to us again?"

"I told you I was cursed." sighed Mickie as she turned towards John and pressed her lips together in a sad smile. She felt herself melt into him as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her close.

"You know I'm beginning to think you could be right about that." he teased nudging her with his hip.

"Yeah, well you should probably get out while you can before I end up cursing you too."

"Oh I don't know about that." John paused briefly to place his finger underneath her chin and turned to face her. The expression in his blue eyes was gentle as he looked at her, his thumb caressing her jaw line. "I kind of like your cursed little life Micks, well what I know of it so far. And quite honestly, it only makes me want to find out even more."

Mickie's lips curved slowly upwards as she rested her hand on his chest. "Really?"

"Really."

He placed a soft kiss on her forehead and butterflies fluttered madly in her chest as he leaned slightly against her, their bodies pressing together. He was checking over her shoulder for Jack and his wife. He could check all night as far as she was concerned especially if it meant having him as close as this. Not only did it feel amazing but he smelled amazing too. Unable to help herself Mickie found herself sniffing at his neck.

"They must be gone."  
Mickie quickly stepped back and busied herself with her bag as she tried to compose herself. Another second longer and she would have buried her face in there and inhaled deeply.

"Come on. Let's go and catch ourselves a movie."

Mickie smiled as John took hold of her hand but her smile soon disappeared as she winced with pain. Her damn foot was killing her but thankfully they would be sitting down soon. They weaved through the people in the lobby. Fucking heels. They would be the death of her.

"So what do you want to see?" asked John as they approached the ticket booth.

He smiled and Mickie found herself forgetting all about her foot. Her ankle could be broken and she wouldn't give a damn right now. She glanced up at the posters on the wall and smiled as she pretended to make up her mind. The truth was she already knew what she wanted to see. Dark Night Rises. She wanted to see that movie ever since the Dark Night came out.

"How do you like that one?"

"The new batman movie?"

Mickie nodded her head as she shifted her feet uncomfortably on the faded carpet.

John laughed as he reached into the back pocket of his jeans for his wallet.

"I Like the way you think James"

He paid for the tickets and treated her to soda and popcorn. Butter of course. He'd even remembered napkins for her fingers. He really was a perfect gentleman. Mickie followed him into the dimly lit theatre, her eyes consciously searching for Jack as they walked to their seats. She knew he hated action movies and was unlikely to be in here but you never could be too sure especially with her shit luck. But thankfully there appeared to be no sign of him and Mickie removed her jacket before settling down into her seat. She took a sip of soda from her straw and turned her head towards John. Her eyes almost popped out of her head and she swore her mouth was hanging open. He'd taken off his jacket and was wearing a black t-shirt. She'd never seen him in just a t-shirt before and she'd certainly never seen his arms uncovered. Sweet Jesus they were huge and his biceps were straining against the sleeve. This man was all hard solid muscle. Okay, she'd guessed he was from the little she'd managed to touch but she'd never suspected this and that was just his arms. What on earth did the rest of his body look like? Mickie swallowed thickly. God, she needed to find out and she needed to find out fast.

"You know I couldn't tell you the last time I was at the movies." smiled John as he passed her the popcorn. Mickie managed to calm down enough to take a handful and thank him. He placed the cardboard box between his thick parted thighs. "I think it was last year when my niece dragged me to see Lion Kind 3D I live on the edge." he grinned.

Mickie grinned back thinking how sweet John really was. Not many men would take a little girl to the movie theatre. Well, certainly none of the bastards she'd come across in her time. " I love that movie! How old is she?"

"My niece? She's just turned 9 a couple of months back."

"I was five when I saw my first Disney Movie. It was Little Mermaid. It's my absolute favorite."

"You like Disney, huh? Tell you what, the next movie that comes out? I'll let you borrow my niece and you can take her with you leaving me free for some baseball and beer."

She laughed as the theatre went dark and settled back in her seat as the big screen lit up. As her brown eyes watched the trailer, she felt John's arm slip around her shoulder. Her heart beat a little faster as she leaned towards him and her lips tugged upwards. He held her close all the way through the movie. They had a little makeout scene in between scenes. She felt like a teenager, it was hot. She pulled on her coat and buttoned it up as the lights flooded the theatre.

Mickie sighed. She'd spilled her soda all over Rachel's sweater. There was a huge stain on the front of it again. Her hand had been gripping her cup tightly and the lid had popped off. She prayed the stain came out or she'd have to ask her mother for another miracle. It was the last time she wore this damn thing. It was obviously as cursed as she was. Rachel was fucking welcome to it.

John took hold of her hand as they began to file out of the theatre. She guided a lock of hair behind her ear. Her ankle felt sore and stiff but she chose to ignore it hoping she would make it to the car. She smiled as John led her down the aisle.

John smiled as they walked into the lobby. It was abuzz with chatter and they weaved through the various bodies. The cold night air hit them as they stepped outside. Mickie felt her lips quiver when John stopped suddenly. His blue eyes narrowed in her direction.

"Micks, you're limping. What happened?"

She sighed and conceded defeat. A girl could only be brave for so long especially trying to walk in killer heels. "I think I hurt my ankle when I slipped off the kerb." she admitted.

"Is it painful?"

"Just a little."

"You think you need to get it checked out?"

"Nah, I'll be fine. I think I just twisted it a bit."

"Then do you think you can make it back to the car?"

Mickie nodded her head.

"Then here, let me help you." John slid his arm around her waist and Mickie gripped hold of him as they began to walk. "Try to keep your weight off it and lean onto me."

He sure didn't need to tell her twice. Mickie tightened her hold on him as they made their way slowly to the car. She could feel the heat of his body next to hers. He felt so firm and warm against her hand. There were definitely perks to injuring yourself and this was one of them. Maybe he could volunteer to be her personal doctor. God, she loved holding John and feeling so close to him. She felt disappointed when they reached the car and he helped her in. She hadn't wanted to let go not when it felt so good. All too soon, they were standing outside her apartment. She bit down on her lip before smiling at him shyly. Her keys were clutched in her hand. "I enjoyed myself tonight. Thank you." she said.

"It was my pleasure." John smiled as his fingers reached up to brush through her hair. She forgot to breathe for a tiny second as his blue eyes met hers and he tucked a loose curl behind her ear. "Well just remember to put some ice on that ankle, okay? It will help keep down any swelling."

"Yes " she smirked.

"Don't be a smart ass." he joked.

Mickie's laughter was silenced by his sweet kiss. She closed her eyes as she melted into him, his mouth parting to kiss her more deeply. She felt her heart race and her knees tremble as she allowed her hand to slide around his waist enjoying the sensation of kissing him. God, it was like nothing else in the world. John was just amazing. There was nowhere else she wanted to be than be here right here and right now. She wondered if John felt as overwhelmingly happy as she did. Slowly they broke apart.

"So I guess this is the part where we say goodnight." she said almost sadly.

Mickie was reluctant to let him go and didn't want the night to end. Her body was throbbing for him. Her mouth was still wet from his kiss. She wanted him to stay. Every part of her wanted him to stay but she was following the rules tonight no matter what and the rules said to take this slow. She wasn't going to do anything to fuck this up. Not now. Not when she knew she couldn't let go.

"Maybe I'll give you a call tomorrow and check on that ankle of yours." he said smiling and taking hold of her hand.

Mickie felt her heart soar and she had to stop herself from grinning like an idiot. It was only a phone call after all but John had never called her at home and certainly not on a weekend. God, she couldn't wait to hear his sexy tone on the other end of the line. "Well you do have my number now." she smiled.

"Yes I do."

John kissed her again taking her breath away, his tongue softly brushing against hers. Stephanie felt a sudden rush of heat across her chest. John was killing her here. Didn't he realise he was breaking the second date rule? How was she meant to go slow when he was kissing her like that? Maybe she should just say fuck it and invite him inside. Her chest was heaving with her heavy breaths as they broke apart. The word stay was on the tip of her tongue but she quickly lost her courage as John stepped back.

"I'd better go. I'll call you tomorrow."

"Okay."

"Goodnight Mickie."

"Goodnight." she smiled.

He let go of her hand, his fingertips lingering for a second, before he turned and walked to the car. Mickie slid the key in the lock and let herself inside. She resisted the temptation to watch John pull away. She didn't want to appear too eager. Instead she limped towards the living room where her magazine sat. She needed to check out the tips for date number three and try her best to wait patiently for his call tomorrow. Okay, she was totally pathetic and it was probably way too soon but she actually had the crazy and insane feeling that she was in love.


	14. Chapter 14

Mickie's heels clicked against the tarmac as she made her way to the office building. She felt a painful twinge in her ankle as she ascended the steps and entered the busy lobby. She smiled at Zoe at the reception desk. In the last couple of days the swelling in her foot had gone down considerably although her skin was a funny purple color. Still, maybe she shouldn't have worn her black heeled boots today and stuck to the flat shoes like she had planned to but she wanted to wear her new red skirt and without the heels she would have looked totally lame. Fashion didn't come without a price even if that meant spending all day hobbling around the office which had its own little perks in a way. Sandy had been a total doll fetching her coffee all morning refusing to let her put pressure on her foot. In fact, she'd had to wait until Sandy had left for lunch before she could make her own escape from the building and grab some fresh air. She'd practically had on her on desk rest especially with John being out of the office. He was at a meeting with some major account.

As Mickie made her way to the elevator, she wondered if he would be in this afternoon. She was dying to see him. It had felt like days since he'd kissed her goodbye although he had called her yesterday like he had promised to. She'd been so nervous when she had lifted the phone and heard his voice at the end of the line.

"Hey you"

A slow smile crept across her face. Those were the words he had greeted her with causing her heart to dance. His deep, sexy tone sounded so clear and so vivid in her head. It was like John was standing right next to her right now. God, she was even that hopeless she could smell his cologne. That spicy, intoxicating scent that made her want to bury her face in his neck and get lost in him forever.

"You know, I thought it was you I saw walking along the street."

Mickie frowned to herself. John never said that though. Now her mind was getting carried away itself inventing conversation between them. She shook her head slightly trying to get a grip and flicking her hair over shoulder. That was when she spotted him out of the corner of her eye standing beside her, smiling at her. She let out a small gasp as her heart flipped madly in her chest. She closed her eyes for a second and opened them again. Yep, John was really standing there looking all kinds of sexy in a dark suit and a crisp white shirt open at the collar. He wasn't wearing a tie today. God, she loved it when he did that because it meant that his neck was exposed, his lovely, smooth thick neck.

"But then I said to myself it couldn't be Micks." he continued smirking at her sexily. Another thing she absolutely loved him doing. In fact, was there anything he did that she didn't love? She was beginning to think not. "Because at ten minutes past two, she would be sitting at her desk working on that story I needed by tomorrow." he said narrowing his blue eyes in her direction.

Mickie cleared her throat awkwardly as she began impatiently banging on the elevator button. "Yeah, well I would have been if I hadn't been waiting on this thing forever. And of course I can't take the stairs, you know with my ankle and all."

She pretended to pout at him as she shifted her feet around on the clean marble floor. The least she could do was try and work her injury to her advantage and maybe score her some sympathy points to make up for her tardiness.

"You're right. I'm sorry." John's lips curved upwards in a smile and he nodded his head in acknowledgment at a member of personnel who walked past them. His name was Will or William or something. Mickie vaguely recognised his face. "How is your foot anyway? Did the ice help with the swelling?" he asked.

"Yes it did." she smiled. "And I took your advice and kept it elevated just like you told me to."

"Good girl." he grinned but it slightly faded as he glanced down and noticed her choice of footwear. "Although I guess you must have missed the part where I told you to stop wearing those damn heels. You're going to break your neck one of these days."

The elevator door pinged open as Mickie snorted at him indignantly. "They're fashion, John but being a man, I wouldn't expect you to understand that."

As she walked into the elevator, she heard his deep laughter as he followed on behind her. Her mouth quivered with her own smile as his shoulder brushed against hers and she clutched her magazine loosely to her chest. The steel doors pinged closed.

"So you like reading bridal magazines then?" asked John

Mickie's brown eyes went wide as she felt the heat rush to her cheeks. God, she had forgotten about all about the magazine. She pressed the cover firmly to her, hiding it from view. "What? Em, no." she stuttered. "It's a fashion magazine actually."

John raised his eyebrows fractionally. "A fashion magazine called Brides Unlimited?"

Mickie scrunched her nose in disapproval as she quickly stuffed her magazine in her bag wondering why on earth John had to notice everything. He was too damn observant for his own good sometimes. As she tilted her head upwards, she noticed his blue eyes twinkling in her direction.

"Planning on getting hitched?" he winked.

"No" she stammered feeling her face explode with heat. God, she had to clear up this mess and quickly. She didn't want John thinking all she did was fantasise about weddings and marriage and certainly not with him. In fact the thought hadn't even crossed her mind. Well, no more than once. Okay, maybe even twice and the time where she typed his last name against hers absolutely did not count. It wasn't her fault if her fingers got mixed up and used the wrong keys although Mickie Cena had looked kind of pretty on screen. "If you must know, there's more to life to getting married." she said.

"There is?"

"Yes." she nodded as she pushed a strand of hair behind her ear. "I mean, there's my career of course not to mention things I want to accomplish with my life before I tie myself down like maybe jetting around the world or taking up zumba"

"Zumba?" asked John, his blue eyes twinkling with amusement.

"Yeah. I mean, that's probably going to take me at least 5 years or so."

"5 years, huh?"

Mickie shrugged. "Well maybe 3 or 4 depending on how things go."

John looked at her thoughtfully for a moment before leaning his head towards her. "Well I hate to tell you this baby but in 3 or 4 years time, your fashion magazine could be a little out of date."

The corner of her mouth trembled at the corners as she tried her hardest not to grin like a loony. Baby. John had called her baby! It was like a term of endearment, sort of like a pet name or something. Something that couples did together. Oh my God, they were acting like a couple. Mickie cleared her throat as she told herself to mentally get a grip. After all, she didn't want to scare John off. He was probably already freaking out about the magazine thinking she was a deranged bunny boiler or something who wanted to tie him down after two dates.

"The magazine is not for me, silly. It's for Rachel." she explained. "She's asked me to be her bridesmaid, remember? I told you that yesterday when you called to check on my ankle. Which was really sweet of you, by the way." she smiled shyly.

"Sweet, nothing. Your ankle was a convenient excuse for me. See, I was planning to call you anyway."

"You were?"

John nodded and his face moved towards hers and for a brief second she stopped breathing. He was going to kiss her. She just knew he was. She could feel her lips tingle in anticipation but all too soon she was disappointed as the elevator doors sprung open. She silently cursed them under her breath as she made her way onto their floor.

"Mickie, there you are! I thought I told you not to leave your desk." Sandy's big green eyes went wide as John stepped out from the elevator. "Mr Cena, I'm sorry. I…I was just looking for Mickie. I didn't realise she was with you." she stammered as her fingers wrung nervously together.

Sandy was always scared of John. Mickie never understood why. Okay he was big and muscular and intimidating to Sandy's tiny five foot frame but he was really like a giant big teddy bear. He was soft and gentle and warm, minus the cute bow of course and the brown fur.

"That's okay." he smiled. "I have to go see Gary in design anyway. Perhaps you could escort Mickie back to her desk for me. Make sure she doesn't trip up in those fashionable heels of hers."

Mickie bit down on her lip to contain her smile as Sandy followed her towards the office. She tried not to inhale her pungent perfume as she hobbled towards her desk. She ignored the ugly smirk Mary threw her way as they passed her cubicle. God knows what that she was so amused about. Maybe she was salivating at the fact that she was late and she would get to tell Jack all about it. In fact, she'd probably scribbled the time down in that notepad of hers and underlined it several times. 2.13pm. Mickie finally back in office. Stupid bitch!

"Where did you get to anyway? I told you I would bring you back lunch."

"I'm sorry. I just wanted to grab some air." Mickie smiled at Sandy as she sat down on her chair. She placed her bag down on her desk. She noticed the misplaced box file and felt herself bristle in annoyance. Mandy had obviously been raking around again. She swore she deliberately put in back in the wrong place on purpose. Well any more of it and she would be definitely having words with her but not now and not today. She was in far too much of a good mood and not even Mary the Big Mouth could spoil it. Not after John saying he wanted to call her, sore foot or no sore foot. God, the man was so sweet. Was it any wonder he monopolised her every thought?

"Is that a bridal magazine?" gushed Sandy.

Mickie nodded as she pulled the magazine out from her bag and casually began to flick through it. "Rachel is getting married and she's asked me to be a bridesmaid."

"Oh my God, that's great. I was a bridesmaid once."

"Me too." Mickie smiled as she looked up at Sandy "I was 11 at the time, I think. My Mom's cousin was getting married. That was the pink frilly taffeta incident I told you about last week."

Sandy frowned slightly. "I thought that was your Cousin's wedding?"

"No. I wore black silk at his. The dress was absolutely beautiful."

"So, this is your third time round at being a bridesmaid?"

"Yes." Mickie beamed proudly although her smile faltered as she noticed Sandy grimace slightly.

"You know what they say, don't you? Three times a bridesmaid, never a bride."

"What?" asked Mickie suddenly alarmed.

"Yeah, it's an old wedding superstition."

Mickie tried to tell herself to remain calm. Who believed in old, stupid superstitions anyway? And besides, she wasn't a superstitious person anyway. Okay, she never walked under ladders but that was more health and safety than anything else. And okay she got out of the same side of the bed as she crawled into, but that was just habit. And when she chased after the neighbour's black cat that time, it wasn't because she thought it was taking her good luck with it. She was just worried it would go astray. She was being careful and considerate, that was all.

"Actually, it's not superstition. It's a fact." interrupted Mary whose face appeared over the top of her cubicle. Mickei sighed inwardly and dumped the magazine beside her bag and turned towards her computer.  
"It happened to my cousin Barbra." said Mary.

"She's fifty now and still unattached. In fact, her fiancé broke their engagement off right after she was a bridesmaid for a third time. She was devastated and has been single ever since."

Mickie rolled her eyes as she clicked on her e-mails. Was it any wonder Barbra was unattached and single if the piggy-like features of her cousin Mary were anything to go by?

"Still, I'm sure that won't happen to you, Mickie. I'm sure you'll find a nice, handsome man one day." Mickie lifted her head and narrowed her eyes. She swore there was a sarcastic tone to her voice.

"In fact, you've maybe got your eye on someone already."

Mickie quickly shook her head. "No."

"Well, love does turn up in the most unexpected of places. A bar, a club or even at work."

Okay, there was no denying it. Mary was looking at her strangely.

"You know, lot of people find romance in the office or secretly lust after a work colleague. Do you know over eighty percent of woman at one time have had a crush on their boss?"

Mickie narrowed her eyes suspiciously in her direction. Surely Mary knew nothing about her and John. She couldn't. There was no way unless…

"It's true, you know. I had a crush on my boss once. Linda Meeking was her name."

Mickie swallowed thickly as Jack suddenly appeared. His grey eyes almost glinted in her direction behind his glasses. Surely to God, he hadn't seen her with John Saturday night. There was no way he could have. There was definitely no way. They'd hidden behind the billboard and double checked that he had gone. Mickie felt her stomach begin to churn madly as she tried to search his face for an answer. He didn't look anymore smug than usual though and he hadn't even been nice to her all day. They were usually all the tell tale signs and there was no way he wouldn't have said anything. Not before now. Nope, she was pretty sure he didn't suspect a thing.

"But these things are doomed to failure. Look at Bryce William and poor, young Lindsey. Now there is a perfect example of office relations gone wrong." He paused for a second and smiled in her direction. "Oh and Mickie, your lunch break lasts for sixty minutes not seventy five. I know punctuality is not your strong point but at least try and make the fucking effort."

Mickie scowled as Jack slowly wandered away from her desk. Spiking his coffee with laxatives was sounding more appealing with every passing minute. Bastard. And he was even humming a tune to himself. She faintly recognised it. It was a love song if she wasn't mistaken. Now that was just plain fucking weird. Jack had never hummed a tune in his life.

"Oh and girls, remember what I said." he called out.

Mickie's eyes looked in Sandy's direction. She had quickly glanced away and was slowly creeping back to her desk. What had Jack said? What did he want them to remember? She noticed Mary still hovering around with an even smugger look on her face. Was that bitch still here? She should fuck off to her own desk and leave her the hell alone although no doubt she was practically peeing in her pants at the excitement of knowing something she didn't. Well if she thought she was going to ask her, she was sadly mistaken. She wouldn't ask that bitch anything if her life depended on it.

"Did you see John on your way here? He was looking for you."

There was a moment's silence as Mickie deliberately ignored her, silently chanting the words fuck off in her head. Her foot tapped against the floor. Of course, she was giving Mary way too much credit. She couldn't take a hint if her life depended on it. She slammed down her file angrily as she glared up at her.

"Was there anything else?" she asked forcing a smile.

"You should probably be a bit more careful with your paperwork. I found a couple of things in the wrong place." said Mary before quickly walking off back to her own cubicle.

Mickie ignored the pain in her ankle as she quickly got to her feet. Her face was red with her anger. She could feel it burning. She quickly grabbed the file she was working on and hobbled towards John's office without saying a single word to anyone. Fuck the lot of them. They weren't worth the time or the effort. She settled down in his chair and felt her anger slowly fade away as she began to work on the promotion. She was so absorbed she didn't hear John enter the room and it was only when the door closed over that she looked up from the desk to see him standing there smiling widely at her.

"Well this is a nice surprise! I didn't expect to see you in here." he said as he walked to her side of the desk.

He sat down on the wood next to her. The orange hue from the sun illuminated his face making his handsome features soft and warm. Mickie felt her heart swell as she grinned up at him.

"I had to escape. The people out there were driving me nuts."

John smiled as he lifted a sheet of paper from the desk and his blue eyes glanced over it.

"In fact, they were acting kind of weird, now that I think about it." She pressed her lips together and frowned. "Well weirder than usual, anyway."

John chuckled lightly as he placed the paper back down on the desk.

"Jack was humming some love song or something and Mary, well she was asking really annoying questions like if I'd seen you and if you'd mentioned something to me."

Mickie smiled at him as she absently scratched the bridge of her nose.

"Do you know what it is she was on about because I for one do not have a clue?"

John cleared his throat and glanced down at the floor. Mickie furrowed her brow as she moved her chair towards him. He did know something. What wasn't he telling her?

"John?"

As he tilted his head up at her, she saw his blue eyes sparkle with amusement. There was a sly smirk creeping across his face. God, now she was even more confused. What the hell was so funny and why was she not in on the joke? She found herself getting agitated. Christ, she'd only been late by ten minutes. Ten minutes not fifteen like fucking Jack seemed to think. What the hell could have happened in that short space of time? Her hand gripped his arm firmly as she looked deeply into his eyes.

"John, will you tell me what's going on! What the hell was Mary on about?"

John shifted on the desk and took her hand in his, his thumb lightly tracing her knuckle with a hint of a smile on his face. "Is there something you want to tell me?" he asked.

"Like what?" asked Mickie, confused.

"Oh I don't know. Maybe something you'd scribbled down and perhaps left lying around for certain nosy co-workers to find?"

Mickie pressed her lips together and shook her head. "No. Not that I can think of."

"Are you sure about that?" he asked.

Mickie racked her brains. What on earth had she scribbled down? Of course there was the list she had made on Friday, the one with all her outfits. So that was it. They thought her itemising her whole wardrobe was hilarious but why? And what the hell did that have to do with Jack singing love songs? It just didn't make any sense unless of course it was one of those rare occasions where Jack was just in a good mood but that very seldom happened and usually for a reason. Maybe he'd gotten laid last night. Maybe it was an annual event for him or something but even still that had nothing to do with her scribbling something down and having crush on his boss, Linda what's-her-face. Shit! A crush on his boss. Mickie's brown eyes went wide as she remembered. She'd scribbled John's name on her list.

"Oh my God!" she whispered.

She quickly dropped John's hand as she stood up from the desk. The blood was beating in her ears. Her entire body was gripped with horror. Her face was hot with embarrassment as she deliberately avoided Paul's gaze. This was so humiliating. It was even worse than the time she was sixteen and her parents had walked in and caught her boyfriend fondling at her breasts. She had never lived that one down. She doubted she would live this one down either. How could she look everyone in the eye knowing they knew what they knew about her? Mickie tried to push past John but he gripped her arm firmly halting her in her tracks.

"Micks?"

Mickie slowly raised her head and met his gentle eyes. She pushed back the lump in her throat. "You know, don't you?" she whispered.

John pulled her closer towards him wearing a gentle smile on his face.

"Yes." He paused for a second as he rubbed her arm affectionately.

"But if it helps, I thought the heart around my name was a cute touch."

Mickie gasped in shock. "Oh my God! I don't believe this." she cried. She quickly dropped her head unable to look at him.

"I've never felt so embarrassed and humiliated in my entire life."

"Don't be."

"But everyone knows!" She lifted her head and placed her hand over her mouth. Her brown eyes were wide with shock. "Oh my God, John Everyone knows."

"Come here." He pulled her into his arms but even his warm embrace couldn't soothe her. Everyone knew which meant she had no choice but to leave. God, they had been so careful too keeping things discreet and quiet and now she had ruined it with a stupid scribble. She was such an idiot. She lifted her head from his shoulder and her brown eyes scanned his face frantically.

"I've ruined things and it's all my fault. How could I have been so stupid, John? I knew Mary was going through my files and stuff. Why did I leave that lying around for her to find?"

John lifted his big hand pushing a lock of hair behind her ear and he sighed softly. "Micks, it's not your fault. It's your desk, your stuff. She had no right just raking through it like that or spreading around what she had found to anyone."

"Yeah, well she's gone and done it now. God, I'll bet she couldn't believe her fucking piggy eyes when she saw it. They probably popped right out of her head and she probably nearly exploded with the excitement of it all too."

John gave a tiny snort of amusement.

Micki scowled at him. "It's not funny, John"

He quickly pressed his lips together and looked serious. "I'm not laughing."

"Good." She sighed heavily as her fingers began playing with his collar. "I guess I'll just have to dazzle you with my knowledge of cappuccinos now."

"What?" he asked, his nose scrunching with his confusion.

"Starbucks. It's my fallback option." she explained.

"Fallback option for what?"

"Losing my job." she said sadly. "We're not allowed to date remember and I won't let you get fired like Bryce William did. You don't deserve that, John. I'd rather stink of coffee beans and wear a dingy white apron than let that happen to you."

John's blue eyes crinkled at the corners as he smiled fondly at her, his fingertips tracing her face. "I won't get fired Micks and you won't have to serve coffee for a living. No one even suspects that we're dating."

"But what about your name and the heart?" she asked.

"It just means people think you've got a little crush on me, that's all." He smirked at her and winked as he wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Which is perfectly understandable of course." he teased.

"Of course." she smiled but her smile disappeared as she thought about everyone out in that office, everyone who right this very minute were probably laughing their heads off at her. How on earth was she meant to face them never mind work with them? They knew she liked John. They'd seen his name with a little heart around it. Maybe she could just stay in here and John could smuggle her in and out. No one would even have to know.

"Try not to worry, Micks. This whole thing will blow over soon." he hushed.

Mickie sighed heavily as she nestled her head in the crook of his neck. "I wish I could believe you."

John's hand slowly rubbed her back as he pressed a soft kiss in her hair. "It will, I promise and if it helps, I'm going to talk to Mary. I'm going to have a little word with her about respecting people's personal and private property."

Mickie smiled and lifted her head. His blue eyes were serious. He really was going to stick it to the bitch and that made her feel a little better although she still felt totally embarrassed about the whole thing. Maybe she'd wear really dark sunglasses for the rest of the week or a great huge floppy hat.

"Is there anything in particular you'd like me to say to her on your behalf? You know, while I have the opportunity." John smiled.

Mickie bit down on her lip and chewed thoughtfully. A small smile traced her lips as she placed her hands on his firm chest. "How about not taking stuff from my desk without my permission. Oh and putting things back where she finds them."

"Consider it done." he nodded seriously.

"And not going behind my back and trying to undermine my ideas for any promotions. Oh and maybe you could casually mention that I am perfectly entitled to have more than six cups of coffee a day?"

"I'll see if I can that one fit in." he smiled.

"I'll talk to her this afternoon." He pressed a soft kiss to her forehead. "In the meantime, just ignore anything she has to say, okay?"

Mickie nodded. From now she would have selective deafness as far as that bitch was concerned.

"Don't let her wind you up, Micks." John wrapped his arms around her. Mickie leant her head back against his chest finding herself melting into his embrace. "She's not worth it."

His soft lips brushed her temple and Mickie felt her frustrations slowly begin to ebb away. She inhaled the soft scent of his cologne. John definitely had a magic touch. He was like her good mood pill or something. Just one look or one kiss and she felt her spirits instantly lift. He really was amazing.

"Oh and I meant you ask you last night. If you're not busy, maybe we could do something tomorrow evening? Like go for a drink or something."

Mickie smiled and leaned into him and said "I would love to"

Their third official date together. She had twenty four hours to prepare for it and mentally prepare this time. She had totally learned her lesson. No more scribbled lists for her and absolutely no temptation to doodle John's name. No-one or nothing was going to spoil this. Not even fucking Babyliss or Jack! Surely to God, she'd be third time lucky. Lady Luck had to smile on her sometime. After all, no-one could be that cursed now, could they?


	15. Chapter 15

She smiled widely as she stretched her arms lazily out in front of her. She wondered what time her and John were meeting up. John was leaving it pretty late to tell her. Mickie clicked off the website and pushing back her chair, she slowly stood up. She took off her glasses and placed them down on her desk. She noticed with relief that Mary was gone. There was just her and John of course. He was still in his office. She would just go in now and say goodbye. Maybe that might prompt him to mention their drink together. John had been so busy with meetings today she'd hardly had to chance to see him or talk to him and she'd had her own stuff to work on. A children's toothpaste was hardly her finest hour but jack had seemed happy enough with it. In fact, he'd even smiled and congratulated her on a job well done. It had made her being even remotely nice to her made her nervous. Maybe John had put the fear of God into him too. He hadn't even cursed at her once all day, a definite record as far as their working relationship went. It was suspicious and weird but she wasn't going to dwell on it. She had more important things on her mind like the six foot four God just down the corridor.

Mickie bent down and retrieved her red handbag from the floor. She quickly applied a little lip gloss running her tongue along her teeth. She automatically lifted out her perfume but shaking her head, she placed it back in her bag. She sniffed at her wrist and inhaled the vanilla scent. It was more than enough. She didn't want John to choke or anything. She'd already liberally sprayed herself just a matter of an hour ago when she'd gone to the bathroom and touched up her makeup just in the off chance he had suggested going for a drink straight from work. Flicking her perfectly straightened chestnut hair over her shoulder, Mickie made her way to his office, her small heeled shoes causing her to limp very slightly. She'd taken John's advice and ditched the high heels today. Her ankle had been throbbing last night and she just couldn't face the same torture again today not when her foot had been literally screaming at the thought of her boots.

As Mickie approached John's door, it was open just a crack. She could see his legs propped up on his desk as he sang an unrecognisable tune to himself. It was probably some of that loud noise crap she had heard a couple of times in his car. She pushed the door open a little wider. He was sitting reclined in his chair leafing through a bundle of papers he held in his hand. He looked beautiful. Mickie let herself admire him for a second before knocking on the fresh wood making her presence known as she chuckled to herself.

John's head quickly turned in her direction and a soft smile crossed his face as he noticed her standing there, causing her heart to skip a beat or two. "Are you laughing at me?"

Mickie bit down on her lip trying to disguise her own smile. "Now would I do such a thing?"

"Yes." he said firmly dropping his legs from the desk and swivelling his chair round, he placed the papers on his messy desk. Mickie noticed the two empty coffee cups on the window ledge behind him. The sky was black dark through the glass and scattered with stars. Odd windows from the building across the street were bathed in a soft glow of light signalling that they weren't the only ones still in the office. John was adjusting the expensive black leather strap watch on his wrist. "I didn't think anyone else was still here. What time is it?"

"It's a little after seven." she replied approaching his desk. She glanced at him a little worried. John sounded choked up yet still extremely sexy. She really was totally pathetic when it came to this man.

"Really? I didn't realise it was so late." he sighed.

Mickie gestured towards the cluttered mess as she stood in front of it. John had gotten to his feet and was walking round to her side of the desk. "You know, I could always stay behind and give you a hand with some of this." she offered.

"No, I'm okay." John turned his head away and placing his hand over his mouth, he yawned.

Mickie's brow tensed with concern. "Well, you look far from okay to me. In fact, you look tired. I should take you home to bed right now."

John took a couple of steps closer to her and sat on the edge of his desk, the left hand corner of his mouth upturning into a smirk. "Is that an invitation, Miss James?"

Mickie felt the heat rise to her cheeks as his shoulders shook with his silent laughter. Her fingers wrung together nervously in front of her. "Look, that didn't come out the way I meant it to."

"That's a pity." he grinned before it quickly faltered and he yawned again. Mickie's brown eyes were concerned as she reached over and caressed his shoulder. His brown eyes were glossed over as they looked up at her and he sniffed, shaking his head. "I'm mad that I'm getting sick. I never get sick. Ever. Maybe you shouldn't stand so close to me. You might catch what I've got."

"Oh I think I can brave it." she smiled as she stood between his thick parted thighs. Her hand lifted to his forehead and as she leaned slightly forward to place a tender kiss there. Her lips down turned into a frown as her brown eyes looked into his. "John, you should call it a day and go home."

He sighed heavily. "I can't. I have this article to finish for an early morning meeting tomorrow. I wanted to make it later so I had more time but apparently the company are flying out to Tokyo tomorrow night so I really don't have a choice."

"Then why don't you let me stay behind and help way you can get it done quicker."

"You don't have to do that, Micks. I feel like an ass for ruining our should be going out for drinks, not doing my work."

Mickie smiled. She just couldn't get over how amazingly sweet he was. But he had asked her out for a drink and she had even worn her favorite lingerie today just in case they…..well, just in case. So of course she was disappointed. After all, it was reading her trusty Cosmopolitan that had brought the "third date rule" to her attention. She'd never heard of it before now but apparently the third date is "the one" – well according to the guy's rules of dating anyway. And John was a guy so maybe he had expected something to happen between them tonight. Not that she would be complaining if he did. The truth was she wanted Paul badly. He was all she could think about. She was even day dreaming about him for Christ sakes. No guy had ever made her feel this way in her life. She felt happy, tingly, giddy and overwhelmed all at the same time. Of course, it would help if he actually remembered they had a third date in the first place. Mickie sighed softly and pushed back her hair. Maybe it was the first sign he was beginning to lose interest in her. Maybe her cursed little life hadn't gripped him as much as he had claimed it had. Maybe this whole three times a bridesmaid crap had really put a hex on her.

Mickie's mouth parted in a silent gasp. If that was the case, she had to act now and act quickly. No damn wedding curse was going to spoil her happily ever after.

John smiled at her gently as he wearily rubbed his chin. "You don't have to do this, you know."

"I insist." she smiled as she lifted the seat just beside her and carrying it round to his side of the desk, she placed it beside John before sitting down on the brown padded leather. His big hand was rubbing at his eye. She could smell the faint trace of his spicy cologne. "You look tired."

John quickly shook his head and unsuccessfully tried to stifle a yawn. "I'm not tired."

"Yeah, I can see that." she smiled and immediately stood up from her chair. "I'm going to get you some hot tea from the machine before we get started."

John's fingers gently grabbed her wrist stopping her to get her attention. "I'm fine, honestly Mickie and actually, I don't like tea very much."

"Coffee then?"

He quickly shook his head. "But I tell you what. I do have something that might help take the edge off." Dropping her wrist, he leaned across to his right opening the drawer. Mickie smiled as he placed the full bottle on the desk in front of him. "I've been saving this up for a special occasion." he joked.

Mickie laughed as her hand gestured towards the scattered pieces of paper on the messy desk. "This isn't exactly what I could call special."

"Well you're here." John said simply as he stood up and walked behind her pausing to gently kiss the top of her hair. "That makes it pretty special to me." he hushed in her ear before disappearing out of the room.

Mickie felt her heart flip in her chest and her stomach danced as she closed her eyes and remembered the way his breath tickled against her skin. John thought she was special. Her! Special! She bit down on her lip to contain her grin, her earlier disappointment about their date quickly forgotten. Maybe tonight wouldn't turn out so badly after all. After all she was here with John. That was all that mattered to her. Mickie's eyes quickly opened as she heard his footsteps enter the room. He had two crystal glass tumblers in his hand.

"I pinched these from the board room." he grinned proudly. He sat back down in his seat, pouring them both large measures. Mickie lifted her drink and smiled at him as John winked and tilted his glass towards hers, clinking the heavy crystal together. "To us." he said before taking a mouthful of the brown fiery liquid.

"Us." Mickie echoed before following suit, visibly grimacing as the burning alcohol hit the back of her throat. She swallowed hard and scrunched up her nose as she looked at Paul. Her lips smacked together as she tried to adjust to the taste. "Good God. Where did you get this? It's amazing and strong."

John laughed as he placed down his glass and turned slightly in his chair to face her. "You know that meeting I attended in San Diego? Well, this was one of the drinks we will be promoting with an article next month. It's good stuff, huh?"

"It's very good but it's certainly strong." she replied as she sniffed cautiously at her glass. "A couple of glasses of this and I'll be lying flat out on this desk."

"Then what are you waiting for? Hurry and drink up." he snickered before placing the drink to his lips.

Mickie shook her head amused and leaned forward towards him, her glass dangling between her manicured fingers. "So, that's your plan, huh? You ply me with alcohol just so you can take advantage of me."

John swallowed his drink and placed it down on the table, his smouldering blue eyes making her body tingle all over. "And you go and say that like it's a bad thing."

"Oh trust me, its not." she quickly replied. Mickie couldn't help herself as her mouth moved towards his and her eyes fluttered shut as she kissed him. Her heart began to hammer wildly in her chest. John could probably hear it. His lips were so warm and soft and tasted of whiskey. Her left hand blindly searched for the desk placing down her glass on the wood. Her fingers instinctively reached for him. John's mouth slightly parted, deepening the kiss. A soft moan escaped from her lips as his hand rested on her thigh, squeezing it firmly underneath the material of her trousers before slowly and painfully creeping up her leg. They instinctively parted wider needing to feel his touch, wanting him. God, her whole body was throbbing right now. Was it wrong that John had barely touched her and she wanted him so badly? God help her if he actually….Mickie's thoughts were interrupted as he gently sucked on her bottom lip before his tongue brushed against hers, making her feel weak and giddy. Her flesh burned where his fingers continued to rub her leg gently. Her own hand drifted to his firm chest fumbling with his buttons. The first one loosened as John's mouth kissed her neck. Her throat felt hot as his tongue flicked out tasting her skin. She was struggling to from a single coherent thought as his fingers crept to the inside of her thigh. She moaned deeply this time as his hand touched her breast.

"What ..?" she muttered as her eyes fluttered open. Mickie could barely even form a sentence as she looked at John, her chest heaving with her breathlessness. He had suddenly pulled away from her. Her body felt cold and empty without his touch. Her brown eyes were wide and confused as she saw him look towards the door, his thick fingers fumbling with the small buttons on his shirt.

"Someone's coming." he explained softly.

Mickie's heart raced and her mouth was still prickly and wet as she glanced towards the open doorway. She could hear slow footsteps coming down the corridor. She inhaled sharply and fixing the bottom hem of her sweater, she silently cursed whoever it was. She quickly ran her fingers through her hair as they got closer and adjusted her seat so she was facing the desk. She picked up a piece of paper and pretended to be studying it. Boy, she was good. Whoever the bastard was interrupting them, wouldn't have a clue. She briefly glanced at John and she gasped as she quickly leaned across rubbing his lips with her thumb.

"Lipstick." she whispered as she sat back in her seat. He nodded at her gratefully as he picked up his drink. She glanced at her paper again trying her best to appear unflustered.

"Drinking on the job, I see."

Mickie lifted her head and stared in disbelief at the culprit in the doorway. His stupid sailboat patterned shirt annoyed her even more than it did this morning. Jack! Fucking Jack! What was it with this guy? Did he have a built-in radar when it came to her and John because the fucker seemed to always turn up trying his best to bust their relationship. She swore he was put on this earth to ruin her life. Didn't he know how close she had been to having John and to feeling the touch that her body so desperately craved from him?

"What the hell are you doing back here?" asked John

Good question thought Mickie as she tried her best not to glare at Jack and instead pretended to busy herself with the paperwork in front of her. After all, she was the soul of discretion.

"I thought you left a while ago."

"I did. I had to pick up the kids from the nanny." smiled Jack as he approached them hovering at the edge of the desk. "But the wife is home now and I thought I could help you out. I know the meeting tomorrow was kind of sprung on you last minute."

"You can say that again." sighed John. He Yawned loudly and Mickie threw him a concerned glance. She really hated the we he looked.

"Is there anything I can do?" asked Jack.

Yes. Go away Stephanie silently muttered to herself.

"Well, I was just about to explain everything to Micks" John's lips upturned into a half smile as he briefly glanced at her. "She volunteered to stay behind and help me out tonight."

Jack nodded. "Well two heads are better than one but three is even better. I'll just go and grab a chair."

Mickie resisted the urge to punch him out as he looked between her and John, smiling at them both. Was it much to ask that he would just go the fuck away? It obviously was. Now what was she meant to do? God knows when she would get to spend some time alone with John again. She sighed heavily as Jack left the room.

"Well that was close." hushed John

Mickie turned towards him, her lips set firmly in an angry scowl. "It's all a conspiracy, I tell you and Jack is in on it."

John's nose wrinkled in amusement. "A conspiracy?"

She pointed her manicured finger towards the white painted ceiling. "Someone up there is determined to fuck this thing up, you know. I bet you everywhere we go Jack's ugly mug will show up somewhere."

"Not everywhere."

Mickie furrowed her brow at him curiously.

"Saturday night, well I'm going to take you out on the town and then we can go back to my place"

Her heart danced in her chest as she smiled at him widely.

"No unexpected Jack sightings. No interruptions. It will be just you and me." John briefly glanced at the door before leaning in towards her. She swallowed thickly as he whispered against her ear causing her stomach to flutter. "And maybe then we can pick up where we left off just now."

Mickie felt a rush of heat through her body as he moved away just in time to see Jack walk back through the door. Her heart was thumping and her mind was dizzy. Just being in close proximity to John drove her crazy. God knows what she would be like Saturday when she would be alone with him, all alone. Her body was already tingling with the anticipation. She wasn't anxious at all or scared this was moving way too fast. She knew she wanted him. She wanted John so badly she couldn't see straight when he was around her. She realised she would anything she could to keep him. It wasn't an option any more to lose him. Not when she felt this way about him and if meant carrying out stupid little rituals to ensure that, then she was prepared to do it. God knows she needed all the luck she could get and then some.


	16. Chapter 16

"Hey there gorgeous!"

Mickie felt the corners of her mouth begin to creep upwards and she hastily bit down on her bottom lip to conceal her smile. Mary was hovering by the edge of her cubicle like some annoying fat, bulbous insect. The last thing she needed was for her predatory eyes to witness her grinning like an idiot at the sexy hushed voice on the other end of the phone especially when the single ring had revealed the call was internal and office related. Mary probably even knew it was John and that was why she was hanging around like some bad smell that was even more putrid than Sandy's perfume. That bitch made it her business to know everything and she swore she had some inbuilt gossip radar.

"Meet me by the elevators in a couple of minutes?" asked John

"Sure." she replied trying her best to appear totally disinterested to anyone who was watching her by lifting her hand and inspecting her fingernails as she leant back in her black leather swivel chair.

"I'll be looking forward to it." he told her before hanging up.

Mickie replaced the phone feeling nervous bubbles of excitement in the pit of her stomach at the thought of seeing John. She hadn't seen him all day, well not since this morning anyway. She briefly glanced at her watch. Five hours and twenty six minutes ago if you wanted to be precise not that she was counting, not really. She just had a good memory for times and dates that was all and add that to the fact that she had a legitimate reason for counting down the time until she did see him. She was accompanying him to a meeting this afternoon and she had to admit she was pretty excited about it. She'd never taken part in a contract negotiation before and the fact John trusted her to be there with him meant she was determined not to let him down.

They went out this weekend, she had the best time of her life. They went out to this really cute Italian bistro and walked around centeral park and had a couple of drinks. We were so close to you know.. but John said he wanted their first time to be special and memoriable and not drunk of their asses. How sweet was he?

Mickie pushed back her chair and got to her feet quickly checking around her desk. The items she had planned to take were sitting neatly in her bag where she had left them at lunchtime. She was so pleased with them and knew they would give off the right impression. She was a business woman after all and she needed to look the part. She'd even dressed for the occasion too with a two piece black trouser suit and a white blouse underneath which revealed just the tiniest bit of cleavage. After all, she didn't want to give off the impression she was one of those ball breaker feminist types who wasn't afraid to use her sexuality to seal the deal. The pinned up twist in her hair finished it off oh, and her black glasses.

Mickie lifted them from the side of the computer where she had left them and put them on. She gathered her things and waved to Sandy who was talking on the phone no doubt to her fiance yet again. He seemed to call on the hour every hour. She had been tempted to ask Sandy if he actually worked for a living but she hadn't wanted to offend her. Not when she was sure she still hadn't forgiven her for the time she had overhead her telling Rachel that she hated crochet including the scarf Sandy had knitted her for her birthday.

Mickie looked over her shoulder when she arrived at the elevators. There was no sign of him at the opposite end of the corridor. He had said he'd be just a couple of minutes too. If he didn't hurry up there was every chance they would be late and they didn't want that to happen. Not when they were trying to make a good impression on the company whose products they would be promoting and writing about. Well, hopefully. Shifting her feet on the marble and feeling anxious, Mickie glanced towards the opposite end of the corridor. There was a guy heading her way but it wasn't John. It was Adrian or whatever the hell his name was. Not that it mattered to her anyway. The guy was an asshole and worked in accounts. She snorted to herself as she thought that it must be a prerequisite to the job. Michael worked in accounts she thinks..and he was an asshole too. Maybe Adrian was also a lying cheating bastard into the bargain. Mickie jumped slightly startled as the elevator door pinged open behind her.

"Going my way?"

All thoughts of Michael left her head as she grinned at the familiar deep tone and turned to face John who was leaning against the elevator wall looking every bit as handsome as he had been first thing this morning in his matching black shirt and suit. His pale purple tie was a little crooked though but that was always the case with John. He was constantly fiddling with it. By the end of the day it was usually loosened too and his top button would be undone. His thick neck obviously felt restricted and she definitely wasn't complaining. It let her stare at that cute little freckle on his skin that seemed to always want to grab her attention somehow. Her black shiny boots clicked against the elevator floor as she stepped inside.

"We should be taking the stairs. It's only a couple of flights up, you know." she smiled.

John raised his eyebrow fractionally as the doors closed over before letting his eyes drift to her pencil thin heels. "I don't think that's a very good idea in those things, do you?"

She looked away and pretending to be offended while really she was trying her hardest not to smile at him. John had a thing about her footwear and always remarked how lethal they were. He'd even threatened to report them to Health and Safety just yesterday when she'd tripped over the edge of the rug in the centre of his office. He really was a nut - a great big, lovely, handsome nut.

The elevator doors slowly slid together and Mickie discreetly glanced out of the corner of her eye. John was watching her with that sexy smirk on his face, the one that made her want to jump his bones and that was putting it mildly especially after the strawberry incident at the Bistro. God, she couldn't even look at the fruit the same way either. When Rachel had brought her them to her place on Sunday, she swore she had almost died and her face had exploded with heat.

"I hope to God this thing doesn't take too long. I've had enough meetings this week to last me a lifetime." sighed John.

Mickie smiled as she walked towards him and almost forgot to her fingers reached for the knot of his tie, she inhaled the spicy scent of his cologne and felt her knees go weak. It was new, one he hadn't worn before.

"You know, you're looking particularly sophisticated and sexy today." he said.

Mickie lifted her eyes and his deep blue ones met hers, making her melt inside.

"I think it's the whole hair and glasses thing. It actually reminds me of a teacher I once had at high school. Miss Gabbie was her name." John's fingertips reached out and slowly traced her jaw line causing a hot flash in her chest and her blue eyes stared at him mesmerised as her tongue flicked out to taste her lip gloss. Her fingertips ran down his tie smoothing it out against his chest.

"She was the object of many a fantasy in that English class let me tell you."

He winked and his smiling lips pressed softly against hers causing her heart to thump wildly in her chest. Just then her body bumped against his as the elevator came to a sudden halt and she quickly moved away with the blood beating in her ears as the doors slid open.

"Hey John. Micks."

Mickie mumbled a hello and quickly bent her head as she walked out of the elevator, groaning inwardly as she pretended to pick at a loose thread on her jacket. The last thing she wanted was to make eye contact with Jack especially when she knew damn well her cheeks were still flushed with heat. Fuck, it would have to be him standing on the other side too. She was tempted to tell him he looked like an overgrown walking tomato with his big baggy red shirt that hung loose over the waistband of his black trousers and his matching red sneakers. She wondered if the red rimmed glasses were still sitting perched right at the end of his nose. He'd been walking around with them like that all day. He obviously thought it made him look more important or something. Instead he resembled some stupid eighties throwback.

"I just saw Rose escort the Oaklands into the meeting room." said Jack.

John scowled as he glanced at his watch. "Shit, they're early. We'd better go."

Mickie felt his hand rest on the small of her back as he guided her along the corridor.

"Good luck." Jack called out behind them.

Their feet stepped in time on the plush pale green carpet. Mickie felt the urge to smile. See, they were destined to be together. Even their footsteps were in perfect harmony with one another.

"You ready for this?" smiled John

Mickie nodded her head as he pushed open the heavy oak door and stepped aside to let her pass. Two gentlemen were sitting at the large rectangular table, both on them seated at the right hand side. One of them was portly and elderly and probably in his sixties. The other was thin and looked to be forty or thereabouts and his dark hair was receding on top. They rose to their feet as they entered the room and kind smiles adorned their faces. Mickie found herself smiling back at them as she became aware that it was suddenly raining. The rhythmic pitter patter against the large window filled the large modern room. There was something in the old man's face particularly that seemed to put her at ease. As John introduced everyone, she realised they were father and son. She honestly couldn't see the resemblance herself. Maybe the younger one was more like his mother. As she took her seat placing her bag in front of her, she wondered what parent John looked like. Maybe he was a mixture of them both. If she ever got the chance to meet them she would be certain to thank them. They deserved a medal for raising such a gorgeous and wonderful guy.

Mickie took out her pad of paper and silver pen and saw the flicker of amusement that crossed John's face as she removed the health drink from her bag. She blatantly ignored his stifled snort and curious stare as she placed it strategically on the table beside her note pad and pen. Really he should be congratulating her on her initiative instead of mocking her. After all, she had brought it along for his benefit. The drink was orange, lemon and lime and just bursting with the goodness of life or so the slogan on the label said. It was the best one on the market too and it had cost her three bucks. She was entitled to have it on full show especially at that price and if it impressed the owners of Oakland & Son, so much the better. After all, they probably wanted a health conscious employee to be promoting and writing about their products and she was pretty healthy by all accounts. Even the chocolate bar hidden in her drawer was health related. After all it was for moments of extreme stress and it totally counted.

"What about you, Mickie?"

Just as she was about to confess to her idiocy and ask Jason to repeat his question, John's voice interrupted the silence.

"Micks is just being shy." he smiled. "She probably doesn't want to admit that on top of being a successful and dedicated career woman, she can still find the time to fit in a disciplined exercise regime."

Mickie forced herself to smile wondering what the hell John was talking about. He knew she liked working out but she only does it for fun

"And what kind of exercise is included in your retuine, Mickie?" asked Jason.

"Em…" She deliberately avoided looking at John as she smiled and cleared her throat. "I actually love the gym. In fact, I go at least every other day. If I don't, I start to feel edgy, you know." She lifted her health drink and unscrewed the cap slowly from the bottle.

"I'm also looking into taking up yoga too. You see, I truly believe it is important to harmonise your body and mind." She paused for a second and breathed in and out slowly in order to give her statement the proper effect. "To be successful in life, I feel you really need that balance." she finished. That was a lie, she has no intensions on joining or doing yoga.

She could see the total admiration in Jason Oakland's eyes as he smiled at her from across the table. His son looked obviously impressed too and that had to be a good thing surely. After all, these people promoted healthy living and were probably extremely encouraged that their best interests would be at heart by advertising with people that were an example of that.

"You know you could be just the person we're looking for to advertise and write about our company!"

Mickie tried not to grin too widely at old Jason. She was supposed to be spiritually balanced and didn't want to resemble a mad lunatic but secretly she was doing a dance on the inside. It looked like they'd more or less sealed the deal. Surely it was just a case of making it formal and signing on the dotted line. As she took a sip of her drink she discreetly tried to sneak a glance at John to see what his reaction was to the whole thing. She saw he was still doing that whole cute flipping of the pen thing with those beautiful hands of his. His lips were upturned in the faintest of smiles as he gave Jason his full attention. Damn it, she wanted him to look at her.

"We want a woman who will convey what Oaklan and Son represents, a woman who is the true epitome of healthy living." continued Jason. "But not only that, she's beautiful and successful and has found that balance in her life, the balance you spoke of just a moment ago. Harmony! Wasn't that was the word you used?"

Mickie nodded as Jason leaned forward towards John. His face looked animated, excited even.

"I've got a proposal for you, son."

John smiled at him placing down his pen on the table. "What kind of proposal?"

"Well, see I'm prepared to sign on the dotted line and agree to let you handle Oakland & Son's needs but I want a clause added into our contract. I want Mickie here to be the force behind our promotional campaign. Hell, we could even feature her in our actual advertisements. Get her pretty face on billboards and newspaper stands all across the city and of course her opinion on the project."

Mickie's mouth parted in a silent gasp as her stomach churned in excitement. They really wanted her to advertise their company? Her? Oh my God this was unbelievable! Nothing like this had ever happened to her before and she'd get to wear beautiful clothes and shoes, probably designer label like Gucci and Prada. She would get the chance to meet some other models, maybe even a couple of famous ones too. After all, all these people ran into one another all the time. Maybe they'd even let her mingle with them on photo shoots or even speak to her and invite her out for lunch or something. She'd casually drop their names into conversations and totally impress everyone that she was friends with all these people. And just wait until she told Rachel. They were absolutely going to die when they found out! But all she cared about what John thought of this.

"What do you think, Mickie? Are you happy with Mr Oakland's suggestions?"

John's voice snapped her out of her haze and Mickie glanced towards him with a huge big smile on her face. "I'd love to do it!" she said firmly.

John smiled. "Good. I know you can do this"

Mickie smiled back at him. She was so happy and giddy. The feeling was unreal.

John smiled at her gently leaning across to remove the bottle from her hand. Their fingertips brushed together but she couldn't enjoy the tingles. How could she when she was sat here looking like a complete moron? She could bet old Jason wasn't so impressed now.

Stephanie smiled at old Jason and somehow managed to remain focused throughout the rest of the meeting. It wasn't until they had shaken hands and the door had closed behind the Oakland's that she allowed the excited shriek to escape from her lips. She impulsively wrapped her arms around John, squeezing him tightly.

"We did it, John. We really did it.!"

She felt his shoulders shake with his contained laughter as he hugged her back.

"Yes, we did."

Mickie lifted her head from his shoulder as her animated brown eyes stared back at him. "It's an amazing feeling, isn't it? It's like some huge sugar rush or something."

His deep laughter filled the room and she tried not to feel disappointed as he released her and walked back to the table. After all, they were at work. They had to act completely professional. And besides, anyone could walk in and see them and the last thing she needed was to be the centre of any more rumors. She had only just survived the whole scribbling down John's name with love heart thing.

Mickie began to gather her things together and trying to act as casual as possible, she bowed her head as she placed her notepad and pen in her bag. "You know, we should probably go out and celebrate tonight." she suggested.

She bit down on her lip shyly as she tilted her head to her left. She felt her heart beat in apprehension as she met his deep blue eyes. They were twinkling at her and his lips curved upwards ever so gently.

"You're right, we should. After all, it is your first big successful contract deal."

Mickie shook her head to correct him. "_Our_ first successful contract deal."

"Oh I don't know. Old Jason seemed to take a shine to you. I'm not so sure we could have sealed the deal without you here."

Mickie tried to withhold her proud smile as she lifted her plastic bottle from the table.

"Of course, being the health conscious business woman that you are, he was bound to be impressed." he added.

She narrowed her eyes in John's direction as she saw the faint glimmer of amusement in his face.

"What?" he asked her innocently as his thick fingers began loosening his tie.

"Nothing. I just feel like I made an idiot out of myself"

She felt John's hand on her shoulder as he turned her round to face him. His remarkable blue eyes were soft and gentle as he playfully tweaked her nose.

"You're not an idiot, Mickie. I didn't fall for an idiot."

Mickie stared at him for a moment unable to breathe as his thumb gently traced her jaw line. "you're falling for me?" she managed to stammer out.

John nodded and smiled at her warmly. "You shouldn't sound so surprised. How could I not fall for someone who attached me from the very first moment I saw them?"

His lips brushed against her forehead as her heart pounded in her chest. John was falling for her! Falling! For her! God this was all too good to be true! Wait! In actual fact, it was. First the contract deal, then the modelling thing and now John admitting he was falling for her? There was something seriously not right here. Things like this never happened to her! The planets had to be seriously out of whack or something. Mickie turned her head towards the glass pane and peered up towards the heavy grey clouds in the sky.

"What are you looking for?"

"I don't know. A bolt of lightning or something." she shrugged and glanced away from the window.

John chuckled as he tucked her under the chin before beginning to gather up some papers in his hands. "I thought you were looking for your name in lights now you were the face of health conscious women all across the state."

"Ha ha." she said playfully smacking across the arm. "You're just jealous that it's not you getting to wear the designer clothes and shoes." She let out an excited gasp as she clasped her hands together and grinned at John. "God, maybe they'll let me keep them? Do you think they will? They would have to, wouldn't they? I mean, those famous models wouldn't want to wear second hand Gucci or Prada"

As she stopped to catch her breath, she saw John looking at her strangely. His nose was wrinkled in that cute, confused way again.

"Micks, are you sure you completely understood what Jason was looking for?"

She swallowed thickly and blinked as she wondered what on earth John was going on about. Of course she understood. She was going to be on billboards and on the covers of magazines.

"You do know what their whole campaign entails, don't you?"

She continued to stare at him blankly as she felt little knots of anxiety form in the pit of her stomach. John sighed as sat down on the edge of the wooden table and passed her a glossy brochure he held in his hand.

"What's this?" she squeaked out nervously as she saw the large impressive building on the front cover.

"It's Oakland & Son's new venture. They're opening up a chain of gyms in the next few months."

An uneasy feeling began to wash over Mickie as she slowly lifted her eyes to stare at John. "do i get a free memebership since i am basicually the spoke peson?" She asked all seriousness

John started to laugh and nod his head. "They want us to set up a successful advertising campaign so they can get their name out there and compete with the more well known companies around. Their target consumers will be mostly men and women, aged twenty five to forty."

Mickie licked her lips."Sounds great, i am excited"

"I am so proud of you" John said kissing her knuckles

Mickie felt John's soft lips on her knuckles.

"I'll take you to the gym myself and show you the ropes." he shrugged standing up from the table letting her hand fall gently to her side.

"Psh, I don't need your help. If anything I can kick your butt"

"We'll see about that sweetheart" he smirked

"So, when do you want to start?" she asked

"Start what?" he asked drifting out of his gaze staring at her cleaveage (lol)

"Our little celebration for winning the contract." smiled Micks.

"The sooner the better!" He beamed feeling a sudden burst of nervous energy at the thought of spending some time alone with her.

It was the perfect end to an almost perfect day though just to be sure she'd make sure their celebration took place indoors because who knew when and where that lightning bolt would strike!


	17. Chapter 17

As she approached the bright lights of the hotel, Mickie slowed down to a walking pace trying her best to catch her breath. The two agonising sessions she'd endured at the gym had done her fitness levels no favors at all and her heart was pounding hard feeling like it could explode at any second. Her bare skin prickled with the chilly night breeze as her fingers pinched at her earlobes checking her silver drop earrings were still in place. She fixed the small diamond pendant around her neck as she clutched her purse in her hand and walked towards the fabulously lit up entrance with twinkling lights on the bare branches of the trees planted on either side of the steps. She inhaled deeply to try and stop the racing in her chest as she smoothed down her purple cocktail dress with the low back and glittering straps. It had been another extravagant purchase care of her Mastercard but she didn't care. The moment she had tried the dress on it had felt perfect and it had looked perfect. She actually felt pretty glamorous by all accounts, like some movie star or something and hopefully John would approve. A dreamy smile crossed her face as she thought about him inside waiting for her as she climbed the steps and walked into the hotel foyer.

"Hey there beautiful."

Mickie almost jumped out of her skin and placed her hand on her chest startled by his deep voice. She whipped her head round to see John walking towards her and suddenly she was completely breathless again but this time for entirely different reasons. John looked so handsome and was absolutely stunning in his midnight black suit and matching shirt.

"I was actually just about to step outside and call you to check where you were." he smiled as he gently took her hand and guided her away from the door where an elderly couple were trying to pass by her. Of course she had been totally oblivious with her attention obviously being elsewhere and it was little wonder. John was gorgeous and not only that but he had obviously been missing her. Mickie felt a rush of warmth through her chest as she swallowed thickly and looked into those amazing blue pools of his.

"I know. I'm disgustingly late and I'm sorry." she smiled contritely.

"Do I even want to know?" he smirked.

"No not unless you can tell me how to get an exploded tub of hot wax off an oven?"

His eyebrow raised in her direction. "I can't say I do, no."

"In that case we'll leave it at the apology."

"I think I'm just glad to see you made it here alive." he chuckled, his nose wrinkling cutely.

"I was lucky." she grinned as she felt John race deliciously tingly circles on the back of her hand.

"It sounds to me like the gorgeous lady could be in desperate need of a drink."

Her brown eyes sparkled with her happiness. "The lovely gentleman has totally read my mind."

"In that case, will she accompany me to the party?"

"I thought you'd never ask." she beamed as John kept hold of her hand leading her towards the beautiful carpeted staircase. She could hear the sound of music and laughter when they reached the bottom where John paused for a moment throwing a bemused glance at her silver high heeled sandals as he lightly shook his head.

"I think you'd better keep a tight hold of my hand."

Her deep laughter carried up the staircase as they made their way to the function room where the party was taking place and the music was getting louder. A waiter smiled at them as he passed them carrying an empty tray and Mickie wondered if he thought they looked good together and if they gave off the impression that they were a proper couple. Not that she wanted that, of course. At least not tonight and not in that room where all their co-workers would be, where she had to pretend that Paul was nothing more than her boss when all she wanted to do was dance with him and be with him. God, it was going to be hard to keep her distance from him especially when all she could think about was this afternoon in his office when those incredible hands of his had ..

"Wait"

Mickie's brown eyes were confused as John stopped her just in front of the function suite where she could see the colored lights shining and reflecting off the various people dancing and milling around the large room. "John, what are you doing?" she asked as she turned her head in his direction. "Why are we standing here?"

He let go of her hand to point towards the mistletoe just above them. "It's Christmas and this is tradition. You don't mess around with tradition."

Mickie glanced quickly back towards the room as her fingers curled tightly around her clutch bag. "But people will be watching and they'll see us."

"Let them. I don't care."

Her curved lips pressed against his as John kissed her so softly sending a tiny shiver down her spine. His blue eyes were warm and tender when he stepped away from her.

"In case I don't get the chance to tell you this later, you are without doubt the single most beautiful woman in that room tonight."

Mickie felt a huge glow of pleasure surround her as Rose passed by them watching them curiously in her glittering black dress, her normally pale lips painted a fire engine red.

"John. Mickie." she nodded before disappearing into the ladies bathrooms.

Mickie rolled her eyes as she smoothed down her dress. "And don't you just know that when she gets back to her table, we're going to be the topic of conversation."

"So what else is new? Come on. Let's get you that drink."

Her body tingled as John placed his hand on her bare back guiding her towards the party. She deliberately stepped away from him as they made their way to the bar flicking her hair back casually. After all, she was the soul of discretion and not only that, she wasn't adding fuel to the fire, not after the kiss Lily had just witnessed. God, she could imagine Mary the Big Mouth practically salivating when she found out about that one. It was bad enough that the bitch still thought she was hot for John. Her piggy eyes seemed to watch her like a hawk any time he was at her desk or they were sat all together in a meeting obviously trying to find that secret glance or lingering touch that would give her away. It was why she would have to be on her best behaviour tonight and resist all urges to be with John although that would be a feat in itself. When it came to him, she had all kinds of urges and none of them particularly innocent either.

"So what can I get you?" he smiled as they found a space in the corner of the bar.

Mickie pressed her lips together thoughtfully as she rested her elbows on the wooden surface and glanced towards the array of optics. "I don't know. I can't choose." She shook her head slightly feeling her curls bounce around her shoulders and turned to John. "Why don't you surprise me?"

While he ordered the drinks, she looked around her to see Jack standing at the opposite of the bar deep in conversation with some blonde haired woman. As she moved her head, she recognised her as his wife. Mickie quickly bit down on her lip trying to stifle a snort as she took in Jack's attire of a bright red shirt and a tie in the shape of a Christmas tree. The tie even appeared to be flashing intermittently with little white lights dotted around the material. God, he really was so lame.

"Here you go. One drink for the lady."

Mickie quickly forgot all about Jack as she turned to John and smiled her thanks accepting the drink tucking her silver clutch bag under her arm. She moved the straw out of the way cautiously sniffing at the clear liquid. "What is it?"

"It's vodka."

"How original." she teased poking her tongue between her teeth.

"Just shut up and drink it, James."

She grinned bringing the straw to her lips as she glanced around the room tapping her foot in time to the music. Her attention turned to the dance floor and her brown eyes went wide as she recognised Rachel. Balancing on her tiptoes, she swayed her body from side to side trying to peer past the people in front of her checking for any sign of Tim, the as yet mysterious fiancé. She still hadn't had the chance to meet the man and was seriously starting to think he was a myth.

"Those are some interesting moves there."

Mickie turned, her brown eyes narrowing in John's direction. His beautiful amused grin sent tiny flutters to her stomach.

"Shouldn't you be taking them to the dance floor?"

"Why Mr Cena, is this your roundabout way of asking me to dance with you?" she smiled playfully batting her eyelids.

"Oh I'm afraid I don't do dancing" replied John taking a mouthful of his beer.

"And why not?"

His lips curved into a smile as he swallowed his drink. "Because truly manly men just don't dance, that's why."

A flicker of amusement crossed Mickie's face. "And how on earth did you figure that one out?"

Before John could answer, Rachel's booming voice interrupted them.

"Mickie There you are!"

She grinned as her friend came bounding towards her with a glass in one hand and a strand of red tinsel around her neck. Her other hand was tugging sharply at the bust of her black basque top pulling it up over her cleavage.

"Where the hell have you been?" Rachel asked as she pushed a lock of hair from her eye.

"Don't ask. It's a long and messy story." sighed Mickie

Rachel rolled her eyes in amusement. "Isn't it always?"

John snorted with laughter and Mickie bit down on her lip trying to conceal her own grin.

"I'm glad I'm so amusing to you."

"Hey come on now. You know that I love that little cursed life of yours." he chuckled.

"Watch out guys. We've got a busy body at ten o'clock." warned Rachel.

Mickie glanced to her left to see Mary hovering around the bar. She wasn't even discreet as she looked over at them and smiled smugly before turning to Rose and saying something to her. Mickie resisted the urge to go over there and personally wipe her ugly grin from her face. Instead she took a large mouthful of her vodka and tried her best to ignore her by deliberately turning away from her. In fact, she resolved to ignore her all night. After all she was here to have a good time and Mary sure as hell didn't fit into those plans. "I can just guess what they're talking about." she said rolling her eyes.

"You mean the kiss you guys shared under the mistletoe a few moments ago?"

Mickie's brown eyes went wide as they stared at Rachel

"Rose dished the dirt on the dance floor." she explained. "It caused quite the stir with the Mouth."

Mickie threw John a look of despair. "See? I told you it would."

"Relax." he told her placing his bottle of beer on the bar. "By the end of the night it will all be forgotten about."

"I wouldn't be so sure. That bitch has the memory of an elephant."

"As well as the look to match." Rachel added, grinning.

Mickie grinned back just as John lifted his hand in a wave to somebody at the opposite end of the bar. As she glanced around, she saw it was Jack and his flashing Christmas tree. She rolled her eyes and smiled. "You should go before he's tempted to come over in this direction."

"I take it your not in the mood for conversation with him, then."

"Not if I want to enjoy myself tonight."

John's shoulders shook with his deep chuckle as he scratched at his cheek. "In that case, I'd better get over there." His blue eyes watched her intently for a second making her knees feel slightly weak. "I'll catch up with you later?"

"You can count on it."

She swallowed thickly as her brown eyes lingered on his massive frame until he disappeared among the crowd of people hovering on the other side of the room.

"You know that man is a total God!"

Rachel's voice shook her out of her haze as Mickie brought her glass to her lips taking a long sip.

"Fancy sharing him?" she hushed as she playfully nudged her friend.

"No. You've got a man of your own. Speaking of which…" said Mickie as she gazed around her. "Where is this mysterious fiancé of yours?"

"Tim's not here tonight."

"What!" Mickie whined, her face falling with disappointment. "I thought I was finally going to get the chance to meet him."

"And you will but he had to work a gig."

"Rach, are you sure he's not just a figment of your imagination? I mean does Tim really exist?"

Rachel laughed and shook her head as she adjusted the tinsel around her neck. "Yes he exists. Now hurry up and buy me a drink. Now you're finally here, it's time to get this party started!"

A couple of hours later and Mickie was feeling pleasantly buzzed as she emerged from the ladies bathrooms. Not drunk though, no. Definitely not, not when she could still walk in a straight line and press her finger to her nose. It had been part of her sobriety test as she had re applied her lipstick. The last thing she wanted was to pass out unconscious tonight especially when there was every chance John would escort her home which of course could always lead to other things. Things that perhaps would involve him getting totally naked. That's why she had taken so much care with her appearance tonight and risked her life and limbs with that tub of fucking wax. Every part of her had been de-fuzzed, scrubbed and moisturised to within an inch of its life.

"Hey baby."

Mickie jumped and felt her body tense at the sound of his voice. Her nose wrinkled in a snarl as she turned to him, her skin prickling with annoyance at the sight of him.

"Michael, do me favor will you and just fuck off?"

Michael's eyes went wide as he appeared slightly startled. "Wow. That's blunt and to the point."

"Well what the hell do you expect? A roll in the sack for old times sake?"

Michel glanced anxiously around him as he guided her back into the hallway. His brow was furrowed as he scowled at her. "Will you keep your voice down? People will hear you."

"And I should care, why?" she asked licking her lips and shaking off his hand from her arm. She blinked and pressed her lips together as she stared at him annoyance. "And anyway what's with cornering me in the hallways? This is the second time you've done it and I certainly don't appreciate it."

"Look, I just wanted to talk to you."

"Well I don't want to talk to you so if you don't mind, I've got a party to get back to."

As Mickie tried to walk away, she felt Michael grab her arm tightly and pull her back. Not again

"Let go of me!" she hissed as she roughly tried to shake him off.

"I would if you'd just stop and listen to me for a second."

Her brown eyes glared at him as she realised the only way she would get rid of him was to let Ben say his piece and then maybe she could get the hell out of here before John appeared and saw them together. God knows it would just be her luck that he would.

"Micks, I'm going to leave her. Don't you see? We can be together now."

Mickie's scowl faded as she stared at him sadly. His eyes were hopeful as they waited for her reaction but she didn't have one. Not any longer. His words were too little and too late. Any feelings she had for Michael faded a long time ago and she was in love with someone else now. Someone who made her realise that what she had felt for Michael was never real and it never would be.

"Well aren't you going to say anything?"

She sighed tucking a wayward curl behind her ear. "Why? It's over Michael."

He shook his head adamantly as he grabbed her shoulders desperately searching her face. "But don't you see, Mickie? It doesn't have to be."

"Yes it does." she squirmed. "Now will you get your filthy hands off me?" she cried as she shoved him off and not knowing what else to do, she quickly dashed back to the ladies bathrooms. It had felt like her only sanctuary and she wasn't sure how long she stood by the door but when she poked her head out, she relieved to see the corridor was empty and slowly began to creep back along the hall.

"Mickie?"

She heard his voice and felt awash with relief as she looked behind her. John was coming from the direction of the restrooms with an amused smile on his face.

"Did you see Michael hanging around anywhere?" she asked him.

"No." he replied before his brow furrowed with annoyance. "Why? Has he been bothering you again?"

Mickie quickly shook her head. "No. He's just being the rat bastard he always is."

"Want me to punch him out again?"

Mickie's mouth twitched as she shook her head once more although the thought of John defending her honor once again was quite the turn on but honestly, anything to do with John was a turn on lately. She turned into this huge big walking hormone whenever she was around him like right now. All she wanted to do was grab him and…..Mickie quickly shut off that thought determined not to get carried away. After all, they were in a public place and not only that, a public place with an entire quota of work.

"Well how about letting me have a dance instead?"

Mickie smiled as John's eyes twinkled down at her as they stopped in the corner of the dance floor. "I thought truly manly men didn't dance." she teased.

"For you I'll make the exception." John winked as he gripped her hand in his and slid his arm around her waist. "Oh, but I forgot to mention that there is one condition."

"And what's that?" she asked as she briefly closed her eyes inhaling his heavenly cologne. Christ, he smelled incredible.

"That after this one dance, we make a run for it and I get to have you completely to myself for the rest of the night."

Her lips curved into a smile. "I think I can have that arranged."

"Good because what I have planned for you requires complete privacy. No prying eyes. No damn work colleagues around. It will be just you and me."

Mickie bit down on the inside of her lip trying to contain the grin that threatened to encompass her whole face. "I definitely like the sound of that."

"Meet me round the corner in ten minutes?"

Mickie raised her brow. "Well see, that depends. Have you been naughty or nice this year Mr Cena?" she asked, her brown eyes sparkling with the intoxicating mixture of happiness and alcohol.

"If I say nice does that mean I get to unwrap something?"

"Yes." She leaned forward pretending to look over his broad shoulder as she whispered in his ear.

"Me"

"Then in that case, I've been nice. I've been really, really nice."

Mickie tried to remain poker faced as she glanced around the room discreetly while inside her entire body was tingling with anticipation at the thought of spending some time alone with John. God knows it was all she could think about lately. In fact, she just couldn't stop thinking about it. He was on her mind twenty four seven and if that made her pathetic, she didn't care. John was a habit she sure as hell didn't want to break.

"Don't keep me waiting." she winked as the song came to an end and she slowly began to walk away mentally preparing in her mind the fastest route possible to get from here back to her apartment.

"Hey Micks?"

She turned round and smiled at John as he crossed the short distance between them.

"Do me a favor will you and avoid the stairs? Those shoes are a fucking death trap."

She was still chuckling with amusement as she quickly rushed to the bathrooms to freshen up. Half an hour and one cab ride later she was fumbling with the key in the lock to her apartment door. When they finally got inside, Mickie let out a surprised scream dropping her keys and her bag as John scooped her up into his arms. He adjusted her weight and she grabbed onto him, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"The last thing I need is you plunging to your death in those fucking heels." he explained.

Stephanie threw her head back and laughed as he carried her up the narrow staircase. She could feel the bubbles of excitement forming in the pit of her stomach as she realised it was actually going to happen. Her waiting was over. Her and John, well they were finally going to do IT. It was about fucking time too. Her hormones were in serious overdrive especially after the little makeout session in the back of the cab. If this hadn't happened tonight, she had planned just to jump him anyway. Seriously and to hell with the consequences. She wanted this man so badly. So badly that her body ached for him every time she was near him and of course the constant interruptions this week hadn't helped. Office seduction sure wasn't all it was cracked up to be. Not when every time John touched her someone would bang down his door or the phone would start to ring. But not here and not tonight. It would be just her and John. Rachel had been well warned to stay the hell away. She'd also discreetly switched her cell phone off in the cab and a newly purchased box of condoms sat in her drawer. Her mother would be proud. She was well and truly prepared.

"Which door is the bedroom?" asked John.

"It's the one straight ahead."

John shoved the white laminate wood open with his shoulder. Mickie immediately cringed as she looked over at the bed. It was covered with half her wardrobe and if she wasn't mistaken, that was her bra lying on the floor. Shit. And not one of her sexy, lacy numbers either. Oh no. It had to be the faded white cotton one that was bordering on a funny grey colour. It was the ugliest bra known to man and there it was for John to see. Please God he hadn't noticed it. Mickie slowly turned her head towards him. Thankfully he was looking the in other direction over at her dressing table. The drawer was sitting open crammed with her makeup. Shit. Why the hell hadn't she cleaned up tonight? Oh yeah. She was running late as usual.

"Jesus Christ, Micks. How many lipsticks do you have?" he chuckled.

"Just a few." she replied. John was now looking at her full length mirror. Necklaces dangled from the pine wood frame. A photograph was pushed into the top right corner. And now his head was turning. Shit. He was almost at the bra and if she wasn't mistaken, her big comfortable pants were poking out from under the bed. Mickie felt herself begin to panic and immediately curled her hand around his cheek. She guided his face towards hers smiling while inside her heart was pounding.

"Can you do me a favor?"

John smiled and nodded his head.

"Turn and face the door for ten seconds."

John's smile began to widen as he lowered her to the floor. "Is this some kinky game of yours, James?"

"You'll just have to turn around and find out." she replied already backing towards the bed.

As John turned around she could hear his laughter. He began to slowly count to ten. Amused, she shook her head and picked up the offending garments from the floor. She pulled out a drawer and stuffed them inside before frantically gathering her clothes from the bed. As she looked up, she caught her reflection in the mirror. Mickie almost died on the spot. Where was the sex kitten from the hotel bathroom? Now she resembled something like a drowned fucking rat. Her pretty curls had flattened and frizzed in the hunt for a cab. Her seductive eyes appeared more panda like with her mascara smudged that way. And not only that, but her bra strap was showing. She'd have to make her excuses and go to the bathroom. She couldn't make love to John looking like this. Mickie quickly threw the clothes on the big chair in the corner of the bedroom. When she turned round John was watching her with that sexy smile of his. She cleared her throat nervously as he slowly walked towards her. His blue eyes were dark and captivating.

"You didn't wait until ten." she managed to say as her chest rose and fell with her breathing.

John licked his lips as he stood in front of her. "I can't wait another fucking second."

He snaked his arm around her waist and pulled her roughly towards him. Mickie let out a surprised gasp and felt her body explode with nervous energy. She knew this was it, the moment that she had been waiting for in what seemed like forever. John captured her mouth with his stealing her breath away. He began to kiss her passionately with his tongue sliding against hers, making her giddy with lust. She could feel his hands drift up and run over her shoulders before effortlessly guiding down the glittery straps of her dress. Stephanie let her own fingers trail down his chest. His skin felt so warm through the material of his shirt. Her manicured fingers began to fumble with his buttons. She needed to feel him. She needed to feel every single part of him. She wanted him so much more than she had ever wanted anything in her life. Tugging on his hem, she yanked his shirt from his trousers. She pushed open the material relishing the feel of his skin. It was so amazingly soft and so firm and smooth. She pushed the black cotton off his shoulders along with his coat. Pulling the cuffs from his wrists, her mouth never left his. Her eyes were squeezed tightly shut as she lost herself in his kiss, his incredible mind exploding kisses.

John's tantalising fingers were trailing down her skin. That was when Mickie realised she had somehow lost her dress. It was now pooled at her feet as John's hand moved to her breast. God, he was quick and now he was sucking on her earlobe. Mickie let out a low groan as her own fingers dipped below his waistband. She threw her head back as his mouth began to trail down her throat. He was nipping and licking at the skin on her collarbone as his thumb rolled over her now exposed nipple. Christ. This was nothing like she had ever experienced before. John wasn't even inside her yet her body felt ready to explode. Her senses were on overload. Mickie's mouth parted in a silent gasp as his mouth closed over her bare breast. He sucked and teased her sensitive nipple while his other hand squeezed the other one. Mickie reached up with her free hands in his hair. She pressed his mouth further into her skin. She needed more. She needed him. She slowly began to grind her hips against his and groaned as she felt his hardness press against her. He had to be inside her now. Honestly, she wasn't sure she could wait another second.

She pushed on his shoulders and moved his mouth from her breast. His eyes were dark and aroused when he looked at her. His breathing was ragged and heavy. Mickie stepped out of her dress and unhooked her bra all the while just watching him. It fell and dropped to the floor as John backed her towards the bed. His thick fingers undid his belt, the buckle clinking as he did so. Mickie swallowed thickly as her legs hit the soft mattress and the blood beat in her ears as John yanked down his zipper. She became faintly aware of a car racing by in the street below as he kicked off his shoes. Mickie realised she was still wearing her heels and she removed them as John's pants fell to the floor. She slowly lifted her head licking her lips as he stood naked in front of her. he is.. huge!

"Holy shit." she blurted unable to believe the pure perfection standing in front of her.

"And I haven't even done anything yet." grinned John as he lowered her to the bed.

Mickie blushed as his fingers hooked the waistband of her purple lace underwear and yanked it down her legs. She kicked the garment from her feet and gestured towards the drawer of her nightstand.

"I went to the pharmacy this morning." she said quietly suddenly overcome with shyness. For some reason, discussing contraception with John made her feel a little uneasy. She didn't know why. After all, she was lying here totally naked in front of him for the first time ever. Surely she should be feeling awkward about that yet for some reason she didn't. Maybe it was the way he was looking at her with such hunger in his eyes that she knew he desired her. John wanted her every bit as much as she wanted him.

As he reached for the drawer she moved from under him. She kicked back the covers and slipped between them. It was getting cold in here. She had a feeling the timer on her heating had long since switched off but there was no way she was going downstairs to fix it. She wasn't wasting another single second to be with this man. The mattress creaked underneath his weight as he got in beside her. His muscular body hung over hers. As she turned to him her stomach churned in nervous anticipation. His mouth was moving towards her. Suddenly Mickie placed her fingers on her lips stopping him. She smiled at his inquisitive stare.

"I wanted to tell you something." she whispered.

"What?"

"It's just that well….." Her voice trailed off as he brushed his fingertips across her forehead guiding a lock of hair behind her ear. "I'm not that experienced, John. I don't know any moves." she admitted.

"Moves?"

Mickie nodded her head against the pillow. She saw John's amused grin and looked away suddenly feeling embarrassed. "You know what? Just forget it."

"No. Tell me what moves you had in mind."

Mickie glared at him suddenly feeling defensive. "None and that's the whole point. I don't know any fucking moves John and that's what I'm trying to tell you."

"Neither do I." he said. His handsome face was totally serious.

Mickie stared at him suspiciously. "I don't believe you."

"It's true." John's mouth lowered towards hers. As their lips were about to meet he pulled back. His blue eyes sparkled at her. "Actually that's a lie. I do know one move."

"You do?"

John nodded.

"What is it?"

"Well it's.." He stopped looking at her for a moment. A playful grin slowly crossed his face as he shook his head. "No, I can't tell you."

"John" she cried before giggling loudly. "Tell me, please."

"Actually, I'd rather demonstrate my talents if you don't mind."

Mickie gave a delighted squeal as he disappeared below the covers. She felt him lift her leg and place it over his shoulder. His tongue teased her thigh as he licked and kissed her hot flesh. Her body squirmed underneath him anticipating his touch. And when his mouth finally reached that place, she gave out a cry of appreciation for his overwhelming talent letting her body succumb to him..


End file.
